Malaga electricity grid saturation holds back more than 22,000 new homes

Serious, critical, worrying are some of the adjectives institutions, developers and architects use to describe the saturation of Malaga's electrical grid.

This problem is directly impacting the development of new urban projects, especially residential complexes, at a time when housing supply is crucial to respond to the crisis the city is going through.

Public company Endesa's negative reports have multiplied exponentially in recent months. In many cases, Endesa denies access and connection permits to the electricity grid for new residential, commercial and business projects due to the lack of infrastructure and the impossibility of meeting power demands.

"It is not feasible to carry out improvements in the distribution network that would allow the connection of the requested power without involving actions that require their prior inclusion in the planning of the transmission network," the reports repeatedly state.

Everything points to energy giant Red Eléctrica as responsible for guaranteeing the transmission of high voltage throughout the country, as such saturation of the network happens in other regions as well.

The solution does not appear to be quick, given the years it takes to implement an electrical infrastructure, due to the large number of bureaucratic procedures.

In the case of Malaga, large-scale housing projects stalled due to the current situation represent more than 22,000 homes (22,726), half of which (11,466) are subsidised.

These projects are in the Campanillas and Santa Rosalía area (15,261 new homes, 7,071 of which will be social housing); in the San Cayetano area, north of Puerto de la Torre (1,822 homes, 642 social housing); in Lagar de Oliveros, west of Puerto de la Torre (4,644 homes, 2,754 social housing); and in Soliva Oeste (999 social housing units).

The city council and the Andalusian regional government are the promoters of these last two urban development projects, which are already at the planning stage and have been announced in recent years as a "solution" to alleviate the pressing shortage of social housing in Malaga.

However, the city council has confirmed that Endesa is currently refusing to supply electricity for both projects, which together comprise 3,753 social housing units.

Under current Andalusian urban planning regulations, the developer of a new residential or commercial development must obtain a commitment from the electricity supplier to reserve the electricity supply at the start of the planning process, not at the time of approval of the land development work, as was the case under previous regional legislation.

Mayor Francisco de la Torre has repeatedly expressed his deep concern and stressed the urgent need to strengthen the electricity grid's transmission and distribution infrastructure with Red Eléctrica and the Ministry for Ecological Transition. His primary strategy for increasing the city's social housing stock hinges on the rapid development of the Lagar de Oliveros and Soliva Oeste areas.

Another major social housing project (1,362 rental flats in the Buenavista area, with state-owner Casa47 as promoter) has overcome this obstacle because it already had a supply agreement with Endesa years ago. Thanks to the same arrangement, the large-scale development of Rojas Santa Tecla, for 2,847 homes between Churriana and Torremolinos, is also safe, as is a large data centre in the El Viso industrial park.

However, pressure on the electricity grid is now holding back other housing developments both in Malaga city and across the province. In Alhaurín de la Torre, the situation has also brought plans for a new business park to a halt.

The Costa del Sol faces the greatest strain, where Endesa has stopped approving projects that require more than one megawatt of power, enough electricity for around 150 homes. Similar problems have also emerged in Malaga city, where some developments of that size cannot secure access to the grid. Across the rest of the province, the limit stands at five megawatts, equivalent to the power needed for around 750 homes.

Of the three new substations in Red Eléctrica's current five-year plan for the Costa del Sol (2021-2026), only one, near Marbella, has entered service. The other two still remain inactive. The planned substation in Mijas, known as Ventilla, still awaits environmental approval from the Andalusian regional government after two years of administrative procedures.

A legal dispute involving landowners has also blocked the launch of the Benahavís substation, despite construction finishing seven years ago. The case centres on a plot of land for two pylons that would support the high-voltage cables linking the installation to the wider network. Red Eléctrica failed to reach an expropriation agreement with the owners, who later secured a favourable ruling from the Andalusian High Court.

The case now rests with the Supreme Court of Spain, whose decision will determine whether the infrastructure can finally begin operating. According to sources, the delay has left the Costa del Sol in a "critical" position that could put the entire distribution network at risk if a serious incident occurs.

Alongside these delayed projects, Endesa has requested additional substations and network support from Red Eléctrica, particularly for Malaga city and the Guadalhorce area, as part of the next five-year infrastructure plan. As SUR previously reported, e-Distribución considers these upgrades essential for major developments such as the third hospital, the microchip hub at the TechPark, the airport expansion and the San Andrés marina project.

"The electricity distribution network is going through a critical period because of the sustained wave of exceptional access and connection requests linked to electrification and reindustrialisation," Endesa states.

The Ministry for Ecological Transition must still decide whether to approve the infrastructure projects requested by e-Distribución. Even if approval arrives, construction will likely take several more years, extending the current climate of uncertainty and delays affecting a wide range of projects across Malaga province.