Portugal’s 1951 Pracana hydropower dam gains 90,000 solar panels, combining sun and water into an 89-MW power station
Retrofitting a hydropower dam with solar panels has the potential to power thousands of households in Portugal.
The thing is, starting a new renewable energy plant from scratch requires a massive amount of effort.
The planning, construction, and obtaining of permits can pose severe bottlenecks.
As head of the group’s business in the Iberian Peninsula, Pedro went on to say that it is EDP’s first project of this kind globally.
This is why EDP decided to launch Portugal’s first onshore hydro-solar hybrid project at the Pracana dam.
Can upgrading historic hydropower dams with solar accelerate the future of European clean energy?
Pracana dam began operations back in 1951
The Pracana dam is a historic hydroelectric facility located in central Portugal along the Ocreza River.
Its construction began in 1947, and by 1951 the dam was fully operational.
For the past 70 years, it has been supplying the region with 41 MW of hydroelectrical power.
Today, the historic facility combines its legacy infrastructure with a modern solar installation.
EDP, a global energy giant, has been pioneering the hybridization of renewable energy facilities for a number of years now.
This time, they turned their attention to the Pracana dam.
The company officially added a new 48-MW solar installation to supply energy to the regional power grid in January 2026,
The combined output of the hydro and solar facilities marks Portugal’s first onshore hydro-solar hybrid installation.
Combined, the integrated system has a total output of 89 MW capacity.
Supplying electricity to 51,800 local households in Portugal
Bureaucracy is the biggest bottleneck when starting a renewable energy development from scratch.
Power grids are so congested in Europe that applying for a new grid connection can often take years.
Since Pracana was already active, it had an established grid connection point ready to use.
This allowed the new solar plant to plug directly into existing infrastructure without waiting for new approvals.
In addition, retrofitting legacy renewable infrastructure does not just bypass red tape alone.
It also strengthens the existing facility without impacting the visual and environmental resources negatively.
The Pracana facility went from 41 MW to 89 MW total capacity and now generates roughly 140 GWh of clean energy annually.
The station supplies electricity to about 51,800 local households, while cutting carbon emissions by 35,000 tonnes per year.
Sharing existing grid connection between solar and hydro assets
The expediency of the hybridization model cannot be overstated.
EDP began the construction of the new solar plant in January 2025.
Within a year, they had already launched the 90,000-panel solar installation on site.
More than 30,000 hours of work have been recorded without accidents.
At peak, the facility had no more than 150 workers involved during the construction phase.
Plus, the added installation is estimated to produce 87 GWh of solar energy annually.
EDP plugged the new solar panels into the dam’s established electrical connection.
By doing so, they bypassed the lengthy bureaucratic queues and reduced their overall operational and construction costs.
In turn, the historic Pracana dam has transformed into a highly efficient renewable energy hub that powers thousands of households.
“Pracana is another milestone in our strategy,” said Pedro Vasconcelos of EDP.
As head of the group’s business in the Iberian Peninsula, Pedro went on to say that it is EDP’s first project of this kind globally.
He also emphasized how the project proves that innovation and efficiency can go hand in hand.
Accelerating the future of European clean energy
By modernising a hydroelectric facility with solar panels, the project is powering thousands more people in Portugal.
Instead of waiting years for a brand-new transmission line, the hybrid model maximizes the capacity of the current wires.
It turned an old grid connection into a shared highway for both sun and water power.
Hybridizing historic hydro stations with solar power paves the way to accelerate the future of European clean energy.
