The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food will invest 18,020,000 euros (VAT not included) in the project of direct hydraulic connection of the irrigation networks of ponds 1 and 2 with the Peñarroya reservoir (Ciudad Real). This infrastructure will benefit some 2,000 irrigators who grow 7,842 hectares in the municipalities of Argamasilla de Alba, Tomelloso and Campo de Criptana, all of them in the province of Ciudad Real.
To launch this initiative, the State Commercial Society of Agrarian Infrastructures (SEIASA) has authorized the start of the tender for the award of the contract for the execution of the works of modernization of the irrigation systems of the community of irrigators of the Strait of Peñarroya.
The objective of this action, whose execution time is 18 months, is to take advantage of the hydraulic energy available in the reservoir to carry out irrigation, thus reducing or avoiding the need for pumping from the rafts. For this, a direct hydraulic connection will be made from the reservoir through a new line, which will give sufficient pressure to significantly reduce the need for pumping and, with it, the consumption of electrical energy. At the same time, the water losses that take place due to the current deterioration of the channels will be avoided.
This action is part of the program for the improvement and efficiency of sustainability in irrigation, of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan. It has Next Generation funds from the European Union, with a public contribution of a maximum of 80% of the cost of eligible expenses, while the communities of irrigators and users will contribute the rest.