Commitment of the Company towards sustainable development
Red Eléctrica inaugurates the Ribadavia Maintenance Centre, a building with a high energy rating
Red Eléctrica de España has today inaugurated the Ribadavia Maintenance Centre in Orense, a building that has achieved a type B energy rating, the maximum that can be obtained for a facility taking into account criteria purely related to its construction as related to energy efficiency.

The event was attended by the Mayor of Ribadavia, Marcos Blanco; the territorial delegate of the Xunta de Galicia in Ourense, Rogelio Martinez; Red Eléctrica’s deputy director general of Facilities Maintenance, Eva Pagán, and the Company's regional delegate in Galicia, Carlos González, along with other representatives of the energy sector.

The Ribadavia Maintenance Centre is a services building for the electricity transmission grid in the southern area of Galicia. With a floor area of 413 m2, it will serve the needs of the Orense, Pontevedra and Lugo substations. Together with the Mesón do Vento Maintenance Centre (La Coruña), this centre makes up the Maintenance Area of Red Eléctrica in Galicia.

The Ribadavia Maintenance Centre, along with the Casaquemada Maintenance Centre (Seville) inaugurated by the Company in March 2012, are a reflection of the commitment of Red Eléctrica towards sustainable development, environmental protection and energy efficiency. Both buildings are constructed with materials that contribute to reducing electricity and water consumption, and count on high energy-efficiency systems.

Energy efficiency
There is an energy efficiency rating chart (with 7 values ranging from A to G), based on kWh/year and the CO2 emissions (kg/m2) emitted into the atmosphere as a result of the energy consumed for heating, cooling and hot water. The Ribadavia building was built with the following elements and materials:

  • Insulation in façades and roofs, and double glazing with solar control glass that minimise energy losses and optimise the use of climate control systems
  • Installation of a lighting system with motion detectors and high energy-efficient climate control systems
  • Solar collector system to help keep electricity consumption for hot water to the minimum
  • Reducing water consumption through the use of an aerated tap system
  • Energy efficiency meters to control electricity consumption
  • Electric vehicle recharging posts

The Ribadavia building could have attained the A rating if it had had total or partial self-supply of energy, but the regulations governing the sector prohibits Red Eléctrica, due to it being the Spanish electricity system operator, from generating electricity. Therefore, the score obtained is the maximum that can be attained for a facility in accordance with how it was built.