ScottishPower — owned by Bilbao-based green energy giant Iberdrola — said it has signed two deals to acquire 17 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the UK with a combined capacity of more than 800 MW.

The contracts have been concluded separately with Elgin Energy, which owns 12 projects, and Lightsource BP, which controls the rest.

“The projects, across England, Scotland and Wales, are in advanced stages of development and will be operational by 2025 with a total investment of approximately £500 million,” said ScottishPower.

“This portfolio of solar sites will add enough clean energy to power over 220,000 homes.”

ScottishPower said it now moves to the forefront of the UK’s solar industry, with its market share rising from 2% to 9%.

It said the deals confirm the company’s commitment to growing the renewables market across the UK.

ScottishPower Renewables CEO Lindsay McQuade said: “Moving into 2022, we are continuing to push forward our plans at ScottishPower to support the transition to Net Zero.

“This boost to our solar generation pipeline complements our existing growth plans for wind and storage.

“With plans to invest close to £4 billion by 2025, doubling the volume of renewable electricity we produce, we are taking action every day to deliver on our commitment to deploy more renewables – at scale and at speed – to electrify how we live, work and travel.

“This addition to our portfolio will help accelerate that journey and play an important role in tackling the climate emergency.”