Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. We're starting our earnings call for 2025 and the new strategy plan for the period 2026, 2029. We bid welcome to all attendants via telephone and our webpage. With us are Beatriz Corredor, Chair of the Board of Directors, Roberto García Merino, Chief Executive Officer, and Emilio Cerezo, Chief Financial Officer. I now give the floor to our chairwoman, Beatriz Corredor. Thank you very much, Sol, and good morning, everyone. First, I will start by highlighting the most notable events of 2025, and then our CEO, Roberto, will go deeper into the year's figures and discuss the close of the financial year. I will later refer to the environment in which the board of Redeia brings this strategy plan, and once more, Roberto will go into deeper detail on it.
As usual, we will conclude with a question and answer period to address any of your queries or concerns. As I said, let's get started with the 2025 highlights. From an operational viewpoint, we can say we've made great progress with a record of investments in TSO, exceeding EUR 1.5 billion or 40% more than in 2024, a record figure in our 41-year history, and it's almost a 4-fold increase in the investment rate in nearly 4 years. This effort includes the EUR 1.4 billion invested in the transmission network, with 486 extra km of circuit and 217 new positions to strengthen the network and facilitate the country's industrial and productive development.
Moreover, the availability index of the national transmission network operated by Red Eléctrica sits at 98.39%, exceeding 98.06 achieved during 2024. It is therefore clear that 2025 was a key year, also from the regulatory point of view, as the CNMC published the remuneration letters for the new regulatory period going from 2026 to 2031. The regulator approved the remuneration for the system operator for the 2026-2028 period. With this financial year, 2026, is expected to be better than the previous year, as the current methodology takes the actual costs for 2025, which already has an impact on the 2026 bottom line. As for the transmission network, we believe it should be adequately remunerated during a time when the relevant role played by its reinforcement and its maintenance account for.
Certainly, we were expecting further signals, considering the effort being made in our infrastructure, and we'll have to continue, as you will see during the presentation. In the field of income and revenues, in parallel, we've made progress on high-impact corporate milestones, including the completion of the Hispasat sale, with a payment of EUR 725 million for 89.68% stake that we had in the satellite company. As we have said before, this strengthens our financial position to continue enabling the energy transition in Spain. The European Investment Bank has become a key partner in this regard, as they support us in funding strategic projects like the pumping station in Salto de Chira and the interconnection with France.
We signed an extra EUR 1.1 billion in loans with several entities, including a EUR 300 million contract with the ICO, and issued a half billion green bond. If there is a relevant event in 2025, we're talking about the big blackout on April 24, an unprecedented, unpredictable, multifactorial incident, as acknowledged by all official reports, both from the European Expert Panel and from the Government Analysis Committee. These technical analysis confirmed the sequence of events as described in the systems operator's report. All reports agree that it was a serious unforeseen event, oscillations, generation disconnections, in some cases through shared evacuation structures, with healthy voltages within the limits of the transmission grid and inadequate voltage control service. All this led the incident to an unprecedented, as I said, incident, both at a national and international level.
This comes from the technical, rigorous analysis of data. There is no guesswork here and no generalization. For this reason, Red Eléctrica confirms that it operated the system correctly, in strict compliance with the regulations before, during, and the blackout on April 28. If there is a highly regulated involved, must comply with the present regulation, which is obviously not approved by Red Eléctrica, but by the executive, legislative, or regulatory authorities after due procedure, guaranteeing that all parties concerned are heard.
This is the case for the new control operating procedure, 7.4 on voltage control, which was requested in 2020 by Red Eléctrica, and approved in June 25, now in the process of implementation. The measures proposed by the system operator for a sudden voltage variations control or the new functions recently assigned to the operator, which we take on with huge responsibility as a sign of recognition to the work and professionalism of our team. I will now give the floor to Roberto García Merino, our CEO, who will give you more detail on the financial results for financial year 2025.
Pasando ahora a valorar nuestra cuenta de pérdidas y ganancias, destacamos que en 2025 nuestros resultados han estado alineados con las expectativas que teníamos para el ejercicio, superándolas incluso ligeramente, mostrando una evolución positiva en las principales líneas de actividad y con un 89% del EBITDA del grupo procedente de negocio regulado.
Business, this has grown 4.2%, launched mainly by the increase of EUR 71 million of this regulated in Spain. This is due to the new financial retribution that was approved by the CNMC and the new types of help that has been given have been adjusted by the lower maintenance units that we need to spend. Internationally speaking, we have gone down a little bit because of businesses in Chile and because of the exchange rate between the dollar and the euro that was compensated in other countries like Peru and Brazil. The fiber optic business and the positive effect of the inflation of CPI-linked contracts is offset by the renegotiation of some contracts in a context of market concentration.
With regards to operating expenses, and without considering those that are offset by other operating incomes, including Salto de Chira, we see that the expenses grew 5.6% in an environment of increased activity and operational demands, in line with the business growth and the network requirements. Personnel expenses went up due to a larger average workforce, which was necessary to be able to meet the challenges arising from the strong growth of the group's regulated assets and also higher salary costs. Other operating expenses grew basically due to higher maintenance costs in Spain, which have contributed to have a high availability rate for the transmission network. The EBITDA grew 4%, driven mainly by a higher contribution from the TSO.
It's noteworthy that there's an improvement in international business, aided by lower OpEx, as well as strong performance of fiber optic business, which combines higher revenues with more contained costs. The profit has reached EUR 506 million, which is 37.2% higher than 2024, due to the impairment recorded in 2024, following the agreement to sell Hispasat, while profit from continuing operations grew by 1.6%. We should say that the financial result worsened by EUR 20 million due to lower financial income in 2025 compared to 2024, mainly due to the lower placement of cash surpluses. Corporate income tax increased with an effect rate above 25% due to the fiscal impact and dividends that were received from group companies that are not part of the tax base.
From the financial perspective, the net group's debt is EUR 5.4 billion at the end of the year, which represents an increase of EUR 100 million compared to December 2024. The cash generation, together with the EUR 725 million received from the sale of Hispasat and dividends from the group, especially from Brazil, have helped us to contain the growth of that debt and continue to have solid financial structure, with an EBITDA rate of 4.4 x and an FFO of net debt of 18.9%.
With the results of 2025, and what we've already seen from the period of 2021-2024, we can say that we have exceeded all the objectives set out in our strategic plan for the period of 2021, 2025, placing the company in a very solid position to tackle the challenges of the new strategic plan. The TSO investments have reached EUR 4.4 billion, exceeding the initial target of EUR 3.3 billion, ending with a historic figure, as was said before, of more than EUR 1.5 billion of TSO in 2025. The EBITDA margin stood at a solid 75.8%, which also has complied with what was foreseen.
We have a balanced financial structure with a net debt EBITDA rate of 4.4 and an FFO over a debt of 18.9%, and we have preserved an A- credit rating with both Fitch and Standard & Poor's. Finally, we have ensured a stable shareholder returns throughout the whole period, and we've improved even the initial dividend distribution target. In short, we're closing this plan in 2025 with an excellent level of execution and a very solid position in order to face the next stage. Now, I'd like to give the floor back to our chairwoman.
Well, in truth, it is great to hear how we met our strategy plan exceeding expectations, so allow me to congratulate the whole team for it. In recent years, the energy industry has undergone a radical transformation. We're witnessing a new scenario driven by 3 large dynamics: the acceleration of electrification, the growing demand for network infrastructures to connect more dispersed and fragmented generation structure, and the need to ensure a secure, sustainable, and competitive supply always. Electrification moves on at an unstoppable pace, and the demand for electricity grows faster than global energy consumption. This change is driven by new needs, starting with the expansion of electric vehicles and data centers, and continuing to the electrification of industry, the installation of electrolyzers, heat pumps, and battery factories. All these elements are redefining consumption patterns and demand more robust, smarter, and more resilient networks.
Spain specifically faces an enormous opportunity. The growth of electricity demand associated to new industrial and digital consumption places our country in a strategic position within Europe. This scenario is not safe from significant challenges, as it offers enormous potential to lead the energy transition and consolidate a cleaner, more efficient model in which Spain will take a leading position due to its high and secure penetration of renewable energies, reaching nearly 57% of our energy mix, including 8 GW of photovoltaic self-consumption. In this context, electricity networks are the strategic enabler of the transformation. Without well-dimensioned, robust grids, no transition is possible. Therefore, this is a strategic priority for oncoming years. Globally, according to the World Energy Outlook 2025, global investment in networks will strongly grow until 2035, driven by the electrification of end consumption.
For an electricity transmission operator such as Redeia, this scenario is a sustained opportunity for growth, backed by a stable regulatory framework, increasing investment requirements, a clear roadmap for expanding and modernizing the grid, and with agile administrative and environmental processing of projects, which is one of the major areas for improvement at present. The decisive push also comes from European institutions to make decarbonization into the real driver for growth, security, and energy autonomy, which are vital for the continent. In this regard, tools such as the Networks Package, recently presented by the European Commission, seeks to boost investment in electricity infrastructure, speed up permits, and improve the coordination of network planning at the European Union level. The same can be said of the Energy Highways project, identifying up to eight large bottlenecks in Europe that need to be resolved urgently to complete the energy union.
These include two new trans-Iberian interconnections, which are absolutely a must to meet EU targets and enable the degree of interconnection required by the Iberian Peninsula, which, as I usually say, is more of an electricity island than Ireland itself. This institutional commitment is fundamental to ensure the development of the necessary electricity infrastructure and to sustain the pace of investment required by the energy transition. This transition involves a much more complex environment, not only due to the massive integration of renewables, but also because of the emergence of new consumption modes and technologies. The electricity system is evolving towards a more dispersed structure, with decentralized energy resources and increasingly active consumers. This requires new tools, new services, and a much more dynamic operation of the system.
To this end, digitalization will play a key role: smart grids, sensors, real-time control systems, and technology platforms that will allow us to anticipate and manage events in a much more variable environment. In this context, storage will also play a fundamental role in maintaining system stability. And to face all these challenges, Redeia, as system operator, will have to develop new capabilities, ensuring the resilience of the system and guaranteeing the quality and security of supply at all times. In summary, we face a more demanding situation filled with opportunities to move towards a more efficient, secure, and fully decarbonized system. Thus, the net and decarbonization and electrification of the country, setting up very ambitious targets. Amongst these, reducing emissions by 55%, increasing energy efficiency, cutting in half our dependence from the outside, and achieving more than 80% savings and renewable generation in the electricity mix.
Of course, the vision requires infrastructure to support it, and this is where electricity planning comes into play for the period 2025-2030. This process mobilizes over EUR 13 billion in investment in the transmission grid to integrate new renewable generation, facilitate electricity consumption, and strengthen security and supply. This 2025-2030 plan, currently in the phase of analysis for the comments submitted by public consultation launched by the ministry, is structured around two main principles. On the one hand, maximizing the use of the existing grid to make it more flexible and resilient, and on the other side, deploying new infrastructures wherever necessary to integrate renewable generation, meet new consumption needs, and reinforce the security and stability of supply. It also integrates new fundamental elements, such as international interconnections and the connection between island and peninsular systems.
Beyond moving ahead on these projects, from the new plan, I would also like to stop here for a moment to discuss the present state of the transmission network, which can be by no means be described as collapsed. The current grid enables the circulation of electricity produced by generation facilities for a total installed capacity of 150 GW, a record for the national electricity system. 70% of this installed capacity comes from renewable sources, and it's much more dispersed and fragmented into smaller plants throughout the country. Not only that, with the current network built and planned, permits have already been granted for access and connection belong to wind and PV facilities, 16 GW for storage facilities, and 19 GW for demand facilities.
Out of the latter 19 GW, nearly 12 GW of capacity granted since 2022, which is when the present plan was launched. Those 12 GW are not in service yet, not connected to the grid, and therefore not generating demand because the developers have a minimum of 5 years to develop their projects and then connect to the grid. Even in those conditions, 25% of Red Eléctrica's nodes still have available capacity for new applications. Therefore, we cannot talk about lack of anticipation considering another piece of the context. The present planning, 2021-2026, contemplated proposals to deal with 2 GW of new demand, 12 were granted. When these 12 GW come into service, they will entail an increase of 25% of the present demand in the Spanish system.
The capacity of the transmission network that distribution operators plan to reserve for facilities connected to their own networks also doubles the historical peak of the system, which is 45 GW. Even so, we need to further reinforce our networks, both distribution and transmission. The energy transition is a historic opportunity for competitiveness, industrialization, and the strategic sovereignty of Europe and the Iberian Peninsula, and of course, specifically for Spain. The main projects for the future plan, 25-30, includes major access running across the peninsula, reinforcements of rings around large cities, and new links between islands and with the peninsula, which will enable quick deployment of renewables and new electricity consumption connected to the electrification of our economy. We will continue to work on interconnections with France, Portugal, and in the near future with Morocco, to increase the security of our system.
In addition to all this, we're implementing storage projects such as Salto de Chira in the Canary Islands, or the batteries we're launching in Balearic Islands to increase the capacity between the mainland and the islands. We're also integrating new voltage control elements in the peninsula, and new synchronous compensators are being installed to reinforce the voltage regulation capacity and will guarantee operational stability in scenarios with high renewable penetration and lower system inertia. In sum, it's a full nation program based on projects that structure and connect the entire national territory and will drive a visible transformation in each and every region, as you can see on this image, which is by no means exhaustive, as it reflects only the scope throughout the country.
Investment in infrastructure is necessary, but it is also necessary in technology, digitalization, and new capabilities in a complex system where the priority remains secure supply. To achieve this, we have the best possible organizational framework, the TSO model, created in Spain precisely with Red Eléctrica 41 years ago, and then adopted by all European countries, as it is the most effective system in terms of management, the safest in terms of operation, and the most efficient in investment terms. The new plan sets out an unprecedented level of investment. This plan will be translated into new infrastructure. Between the years 25 and 30, we estimate that we will commission EUR 8.4 billion, which actually might reach EUR 9 billion if processing procedures are streamlined as proposed by the EU and the Spanish government.
Looking ahead into 2031, virtually all the plan will have been implemented or underway, with a potential of up to EUR 11 billion in commissioning and action capacity, with enough room to accelerate even further if the regulatory framework allows it. Going on to the international context, Brazil, Chile, and Peru are 3 of the most attractive electricity transmission markets in Latin America. Not only because they offer stable and predictable regulation framework, which is fundamental to guarantee legal certainty and long-term visibility for investment, but also because these countries have consolidated transmission models with centralized planning and transparent awarding processes, creating a favorable context for us to develop our transmission activity. As for telecommunications in Spain, which is the third fundamental pillar for Redeia, the industry has been undergoing a deep transformation process for years now.
The consolidation of large operators and local operators continues in a context in which efficiency and scale play key roles in competitiveness, and certainly, cybersecurity has become an absolute priority. Networks require increasingly advanced measures to protect critical infrastructures and safeguard user data, a trend that will continue to intensify in the coming years. Another fundamental element is the rise of AI and automation, enabling networks in real time and significantly improving customer service, thus opening the door to new operating models. At the same time, the industry advances towards more sustainable networks with clear focus on energy efficiency and the reduction of carbon footprint, which is particularly relevant for operators with vast infrastructures over the territory. There is also a strong pace maintained in infrastructure development and sharing, which promotes efficiency and accelerates the availability of high-capacity services.
A complex scenario that offers significant opportunities for Reintel, the leading provider for dark fiber in the country, from data centers and submarine cables to hyperscalers and the growing cloud ecosystem. The drive for technological innovation and digitalization will also be the focus of the group's technology platform, Elewit, which will emphasize on operational efficiency, security, and the maximization in the use of assets. To round up the framework that will surround the company in the coming years, it is important to convey the meaning behind this whole strategy plan, which determines each of our actions. I'm talking about our unshakable commitment for 2029. This commitment is a direct response to our context, a clear roadmap to drive energy transition based on neutrality, technical rigor, and innovation.
A transition always guided by a deep sense of public service to add value to individuals, territories, nature, and biodiversity. This is a responsibility we take on to lead this change with vision, but also with facts and data. Our new sustainability plan that we're presenting to you today defines 2 major ambitions organized into 7 strategy vectors and supported by 5 managemental levers that guide our actions. The framework will guide not only our decisions, it'll also make sure that each project, investment, and step forward will contribute to a more sustainable energy model and generates a positive impact on the environment. In short, we are presenting today the way to turn our commitment into results, and the way networks will become the true engine of sustainable transformation.
For this purpose, we have set ambitious, measurable goals that cover the entire group, from promoting electrification and significantly reducing our emissions, to ensuring a positive impact on nature and promoting regional development, including extending sustainability criteria to our entire supply chain. We're also reinforcing innovation and digitalization, consolidating our ethical governance model, and moving towards increasingly sustainable funding. Together, these objectives enable us to tackle the energy transition with rigor, responsibility, and clear foresight to ensure our growth that will always be accompanied by social and environmental value. For this purpose, we have our comprehensive impact strategy and a new social innovation plan.
At Redeia, we understand the importance of dialogue and sustainable positioning as a key driver for management, that's how we understand this dialogue, not just as a mere matter of transparency, but also as a strategic tool to build trust, anticipate expectations, and position ourselves as a benchmark in sustainability, both nationally and internationally. This is proven by our bottom line that shows our continued engagement. Because each of the assessments we go through, from S&P Global to MSCI, measures not only our environmental, social, and governance performance, but also allows us to benchmark our practices against the best standards in the industry.
Thanks to this active listening approach to our stakeholders, and thanks to our alignment with international best practices and our commitment to sustainability, Redeia is now ranked at the top 1% of the world's most sustainable companies, according to S&P, and has once again obtained top ratings in key indicators such as the CDP's A List, among others. In sum, these results are not an end in themselves, but the natural consequence of a model based on transparency, rigor, and the conviction that sustainability is central to our value proposition. We will continue to reinforce this position through open, constructive, and constant dialogue with all of our shareholders, so that we can continue to move forward in credibility and leadership. I will now give the floor back to Roberto García Merino, our CEO, for a deeper explanation on our strategy for the period.
Thank you very much. Now that we've analyzed this economic and sectorial context, I'm going to talk to you now about the new strategic plan for Redeia to the period 2029. This plan seeks to promote the energy model and connectivity of the future, generating a positive impact on climate change, nature, territory, and people. The strategy 2026-2029 that we're showing you here is a decisive step to consolidate our leadership and make sure that we have a robust electric system that is prepared for decarbonization, reinforcing the essential role that energy transmission plays in the energy transition, as well as offering a reliable and technically advanced fiber-optic network that will contribute to bridge the digital divide.
In this regard, the plan focuses on a strong development of regulated activity in Spain, and therefore, it is our fundamental commitment for our company that more than 90% of our investments are allocated to transport and operation. This reflects our top priority for developing electricity planning, optimizing system operation, and ensuring supply quality in a rapidly changing environment. At the same time, Redeia will continue to consolidate its international and telecommunications activities, which provide stability and long-term value. The strategy also focuses on operational efficiency, innovation, digitalization. These are key elements for a more demanding and decarbonized system. Similarly, attracting and retaining diverse talent becomes an essential pillar for successfully addressing the challenges facing the electric sector. Overall, this plan reinforces Redeia's mission to promote a sustainable and reliable and a future-proof electricity system, providing shared value to society.
Today, we present an ambitious investment horizon, total EUR 6.5 billion, of which EUR 6 billion will be allocated to domestic transport activity. This brings us to a historic level of investment of TSO, with an average annual investment of EUR 1.5 billion, which is 70% higher than the average annual investment from the previous strategic plans from 2021-2025. If we consider the EUR 6 billion in investment that will be executed in the period of 2026-2029, as well as the investment that took place in the year 2025 and what will be taking place after this plan and throughout the years of 2030 and 2031, the total amount of investment will reach levels close to those considered in the draft from 2025-2030.
Likewise, our firm alignment with the European Union's climate and sustainability objectives also reflects that the fact that 100% of the TSO investments are eligible under European taxonomy. Therefore, we expect the transport part of Spain should increase very much, a significant growth they should have, and the most important thing is submarine interconnection in the Bay of Biscay, as well as the deployment of another 400 kV that will connect different regions or various regions, along with installation of synchronous compensators in the peninsular, Balearic, and Canary Island systems, as well as the Salto de Chira project.
Together, these actions will enable the company's RAB to be EUR 12 billion in 2029. It should grow more than 35% throughout this period, reaching EUR 14.4 billion if we bury or take into account the more than EUR 2 billion of the work in process that we'll put up to service in the subsequent years. From another perspective, it's clear that we are facing the challenge of developing the necessary infrastructure to be able to achieve decarbonization in a highly competitive and saturated market environment. It is therefore essential to ensure the availability of the supplies and services that are needed to address the development of the TSO at a reasonable cost. However, the visibility that we have on investments for the upcoming years allows us to anticipate and take measures that significantly reduce the execution risks.
Actions such as conducting comprehensive risk assessments, which has enabled us to design new purchasing strategies adapted to a more demanding industrial context, and also entering into medium- and long-term framework agreements, which provide stability in prices, terms, and volumes, as well as executing commodity hedges to stabilize the cost of the more sensitive equipment. are becoming fundamental to our business. Thanks to all of this, we already have more than 70% of our strategic supplies guaranteed up till 2029. However, all of this investment would not make any sense unless we had a stable regulation behind it. We believe that we now have good visibility and stability for the company in the next 6 years. As it is already well known, the new methodology guarantees a return of investment of 6.58%.
In addition, unit values have been updated, both for CapEx, with an average increase of 6.4%, as well as operation and maintenance, in this case, an adjustment of 13.4% for maintenance income compared to the previous period. It is worthy to note that we've taken our first steps towards recognizing work in progress for unique facilities, with amounts invested prior to the year and the commissions being recognized and capitalized for up to five years at the cost of debt, and that includes the calculation of the financial remuneration rate. In our continuous effort to generate value for our shareholders, we can say that the pursuit of operational efficiency and managing leverage and financial costs will enable us to achieve a return on equity of at least 9%.
Although our activity will be focused on the transport business in Spain in 2026-2029, we will also maintain an investment plan of EUR 150 million, internationally focused on strengthening and expanding transport networks in Brazil, Chile, and Peru. In this way, we consolidate our presence in these regions and increase our future options. We will also continue to invest in our dark fiber business, a market in which we are a leader, thanks to having a stable, predictable model and a long-term focus. Throughout the period 2026-2029, we will invest about EUR 110 million, mainly aimed at strengthening our network, expanding capacities, and meeting the demanding growth for high-quality connectivity.
Our objectives for this period are focused on four main areas: maintaining our position as a leading provider, strengthening relationships with strategic customers, capturing new business opportunities, and develop emerging business associated to the cloud and the high-performance computing. We will continue to explore alliances with strategic partners that will allow us to expand our reach and reinforce our role as an essential part of the country's digital infrastructure. Another significant aspect is the technical innovation and digitalization, which are essential for driving the group's efficiency, especially in TSO. From Elewit, we are developing solutions that optimize processes, strengthen security of supply, and increase the use of our assets. Between 26 and 2029, we will allocate EUR 40 million to projects that support the investment plan and prepare our networks for the energy transition.
For us, innovation is a key lever to ensure a safer, more efficient, and future-proof system. Now, let's focus on the evolution of our economic indicators. Looking ahead to up to 2029, these are the direct reflection of a company that is prepared to face an unprecedented investment cycle, capable of maintaining sustained growth with a greater focus on management and financial discipline. Therefore, we estimate EBITDA growth during the period at a rate about 3%. The significant growth of the net debt is directly linked to the investment rollout that is contemplated in the plan. Even so, we continue to have a robust financial profile, with ratios that will allow us to preserve a solid credit rating and continue to access financing in a competitive form and terms.
As far as shareholder remuneration, we've established a dividend policy that assumes an annual growth of 2% until it reaches EUR 0.87 per share in 2029, ensuring sustainable and consistent growth in a context of historical investments for the group. The regulated business continues to be one of our most important cornerstones of results, and 90% of the group's EBITDA comes from this activity, which gives us stability, predictability, and a solid foundation for our future growth. The weight of the TSO will increase in the next coming years, driving the EBITDA growth, which will grow at a rate above 5% per annum throughout that period, reflecting our capacity to execute strategic investment, maintain operational efficiency, and advance in the energy transition of the electric system.
Now that we have presented the fundamental plans of our strategic plan, we will take a closer look at our financial objectives and the roadmap to be able to achieve them. Now I'd like to give the floor to Emilio Cerezo. Thank you.
Thank you, Roberto. As we all understand, in coming years, we will see a decisive boost in the development of electricity transmission network, with an average annual investment of EUR 1.5 billion in the TSO. In other words, about EUR 6 billion over the entire period. This investment will mean that by the end of 2029, the RAB plus work in progress will be located at EUR 14.4 billion, or a 30% increase compared to the end of 2025. At the end of 2025, the TSO RAB will exceed EUR 12 billion, EUR 11.4 billion from transport, and EUR 600 million from Salto de Chira, or an increase of EUR 3.1 billion compared to 2025.
Focusing on the transmission grid, at those EUR 11.4 billion in RAB will represent an average annual increase of 6.4%. Likewise, at the end of 2029, Red Eléctrica will have a significant volume of work in progress for projects that will be commissioned in subsequent years. On the left-hand side of this slide, we break down the evolution of the transmission RAB from EUR 8.9 billion at the end of 2025 to EUR 11.4 billion at the end of 2029. The transmission network RAB will grow by EUR 2.5 billion as a result of the significant volume of commissioning of EUR 4.4 billion, already net of subsidies, partially offset by the amortization of EUR 1.6 billion of RAB derived from the operation of the remuneration model.
On the right side of the slide, we show the evolution of work in progress, expected to grow by EUR 600 million, as transport investment will exceed the aforementioned commissioning operations of EUR 4.4 billion. To run this plan with maximum solvency, we've designed a solid, diversified financial structure, allowing us to run the investment plan without increasing capital. Over the course of the next few years in our strategy plan, we will have funding requirements of approximately EUR 9.4 billion, mostly derived from the significant volume of investments that we've been mentioning, along with a payout of dividends to our shareholders. As you can observe on the left-hand side of the slide, these EUR 9.4 billion will be funded through the FFO we will generate, the collection of subsidies, and a new financial debt contracts.
First of all, there's the solid generation of operating cash flow, which continues to be one of the group's trademarks. Likewise, the collection of subsidies in connection with strategy projects will account for 14% of the sources of financing. The amount to be received will be approximately EUR 1.3 billion, and most of it will be collected between 2026 and 2027. Finally, using our solid credit rating, we will finance over EUR 3.8 billion via debt, which represent 41% of these EUR 9.4 billion in funding requirements. New financial debt will be raised by diversified and competitive access to financing markets. In this context, and during the term of the strategic plan, we plan to issue EUR 1.5 billion in hybrid bonds or 16% of our new sources of financing.
Our financing structure evolves towards an even more diversified, competitive model with greater weight of hybrid instruments, which at the end of the strategy plan, will amount to EUR 2 billion. In 2029, the average maturity of debt will be 4 years, and the cost of debt will be 3%. Our competitive average cost of funding during the term of the strategic plan, which we estimate to be around 2.8%, along with the group's leverage capacity, are vectors for creating value for our shareholders in the future. Moreover, we have a strong liquidity position at the end of 2025, reaching EUR 3.3 billion. As for currencies, we will continue to maintain a very significant weight of our funding in euros.
At the same time, we would like to stress that we're taking decisive steps towards reaching 100% sustainable financing by 2030, thereby reinforcing our commitment to the energy transaction, transition and best practices in the market. The financial ratios we have set as targets for the period ensure a financial profile compatible with robust credit rating. These ratio commitments are head and shoulders above some of our European peers. FFO to net debt will be above 14%, net debt to EBITDA will remain below 5.5 x, and net debt to RAB will remain below 60%. Together, these ratios confirm the sustainability of our growth and our financial discipline. I will now give the floor to our Chief Executive Officer to continue with the main conclusions.
Thank you very much, Emilio. To conclude this presentation, I'd like to summarize the key messages that define our strategic plan, 2026-2029, and the path for growth that we have built for the upcoming years. In this period, 2025-2029.
Redeia is undertaking the most ambitious investment cycle in its history, with a total of EUR 6.5 billion, which is a figure that reflects our firm commitment to energy transition. A large part of these investments are aimed at expanding and modernizing the transmission network to meet the growing needs of the electricity system, the massive integration of renewable energies, electrification of the economy, and structural improvement of, and resilience of our infrastructure. All of this results in a significant increase of RAB of 35%, that reflecting the expansion of the network, a new commissioning reaching EUR 12 billions at the end of 2029, rising to EUR 14.5 billion if we consider estimated work in progress at the end of the plan.
This investment effort is accompanied by a solid and responsible financial policy, highlighting that this plan will be financed using international financing alternatives without the need to increase capital, thus preserving stability for our shareholders and reinforcing the financial discipline that characterizes us. In addition, we maintain a policy of increasing sustainable dividends with an annual growth of 2% throughout the year, which will take it to EUR 0.87 or per share in 2029. This reflects an appropriate balance between investment, financial strength, and attractive shareholder results. Last but not least, I would like to highlight that the growth of our regulated assets will be the cornerstone of the group's value creation, reflecting an increase of EBITDA and the group profit for that period of time.
Furthermore, we look beyond this period covering our strategic plan. We will consolidate the growth initiated in this investment in this period, as the RAB will exceed EUR 15 billion at the end of 2031. We will also have work in progress worth around EUR 2 billion in projects that will come on stream in the future, which we'll be able to confirm once the new planning has been approved. We are on a solid growth trajectory, which ensures long-term visibility, representing a quantum leap for Redeia in terms of RAB, with greater remuneration capacity and a structural contribution to the development of the Spanish electricity system. Thank you very much for your attention. Now we have questions.
Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. The Q&A period starts now. If you wish to participate, please press star one in your phone keyboard. Thank you. First question from Flora Trindade from CaixaBank. Flora, please go ahead. Good morning, thank you for the presentation and for answering our questions. I have two of those. I imagine there will be many questions, so I don't want to take up much of your time. I wanted to understand the CapEx you have reserved for the plan, because in 2025 you had a CapEx of EUR 1.55, and then the average drops throughout the rest of the plan. I wanted to understand why this average goes down and whether you see any upside in these investment levels beyond 2026. That's the first question.
The second one: in terms of your funding, you're not including any type of asset turnover or rotation. Is this part of the plan? If things don't go exactly according to plan, what do you intend to do, and which countries might become a priority for you if that's the case? Thank you.
Well, thank you very much, Flora, for your questions. First of all, I believe we have a very clear investment horizon for oncoming years, at least within the scope of our strategic plan. This year, we finished 2025 with a record number of approximately EUR 1.5 billion, which is the order of magnitude we expect as an average for the whole period of the future plan. Our engagement is EUR 6 billion during the period 2026-2029. That's four years. Our expectations, and we're pretty certain of those, is that execution capability in terms of investment will remain around those EUR 1.5 billion per year during the length of the plan, and I believe we're making a significant effort to that endeavor.
If we compare our present plan to the last one, that's an increase of 70%, seven zero, and the level of certainty in our investment is very high, even under strict standards, since we have already secured practically all the critical supplies to run the plan, and most plans are in a well-advanced stage of permits or commissioning. That's a very solid calculation. About your question about assets, well, fortunately, our starting point in financial terms is very robust, despite the level of investments we're contemplating. We assume we can fund this strategy plan with our own capital without going to the market. Well, obviously, we will have to increase our hybrid debt, and certainly, we also have European funding and other types of subsidies.
Our investment horizon will probably, after a rating review, will remain robust in terms of financial solvency. We will not need any disinvestments as we did in our 21-25 plan. Certainly, this yields.
... for opportunities in case the investment pace were to be accelerated, we have additional drivers like deconsolidation or the partial disinvestment of some non-TSO related asset. According to the initial plan, that will not be necessary, and we can finance our operations without any capital increases and just use the regular channels for funding in our plan.
Next question comes from Javier Suarez from Mediobanca. You have the floor, sir.
Yes, good morning to you all. Thank you for this presentation. I had three questions. The first one has to do with the blackout that you mentioned recently throughout your presentation, like the origins and causes and effects of the blackout. I wanted to ask you, from your point of view, what actually, like, what should we learn in Spain and the rest of Europe? What should we have learned from this blackout, and what measures have been included in your business plan to make sure that this situation does not happen again? In that sense, I also wanted to ask about the documents that we'll be waiting for, about the responsibilities that are connected to the blackout, and what documents are these?
I understand there's one from the Spanish regulator, is there any other type of fine, or should we assume that having money ready for this, would that change if we have some kind of fine because of the blackout? That's the first question. Second one has to do with extending the business plan up to 2029. Why has the company not extended it beyond 2029? That really has to do with the new plan, the infrastructure plan has not been approved. I do believe that there's a lot more visibility after 2029, perhaps bearing in mind that the company will have new services above and beyond the last date of the business plan you've showed us, perhaps the growth of the company has not been valued properly.
The, been valued too low, infra valued because of this. I would like to try and understand, why have you decided to have a cutoff time for 2029 and not a date further on? Third question: financing for the plan. Have you included getting to the end of the plan? You've decided to get there with EUR 2 billion with hybrid debt, and we're talking about the EPS now, because that should discount the financial cost that is connected to this hybrid debt. It's fair to say that that EPS growth will be lower than the... what you've been pointing out, and to what extent could that be lower? Thank you. Well, very well. How about if we divide up these questions?
With regards to the blackout on the 28th of April and the reports that are pending, I think the most relevant one have already been printed, and we got one from the government committee and an article had to do with national security. Another was the report that the operating system made, and they were obliged to do this because of the norms that we have, the laws that we have when something like this happens in Spain. Also, the European Union named a expert panel for this, and that's the third one. Chronologically explains everything without any doubt of the data and the rigor, what were the various or different incidents that happened throughout this whole process, starting by what happened at 2:00 A.M. or at 12:03 A.M., rather. Very well.
The transmission network never failed. We had more than 7,000 manual maneuvers without having any kind of failure. The maintenance of the part that has to do with the Red Eléctrica was actually complied with at all times, and we'll see this in these reports and in forums. We see that some of the laws were not complied with from, this is by the transport company. In our annual accounts, we have not included this because we don't believe that we're going to be responsible for any matter, bearing in mind that we complied with the laws in a very strict manner. What we cannot ensure is that all of the agents of the sector actually did the same. In the strategic plan, there is...
Well, it reflects many things, although it's not absolutely concrete, but it's the planning for 2025, 2030. It has not yet been approved. We hope it will be approved at the end of this year. As we've said before, here we gather, like, a whole series of infrastructures that so far were not operative in Spain, such as synchronous compensations, and also through changes in the planning in 2024, and especially in 2025, we have included tools for STATCOMs and FACTS and other matters. Our plan has decided to make all of this infrastructure that will give us an operating system that is resilient and safe with greater guarantees, so long as that we can always guarantee that the other agents of the sector comply.
As our CEO just said, we have taken some decisions to be able to have material and special material, especially the more critical ones, to be able to be in the right condition to deploy this infrastructure as soon as possible. Actually, the laws that we have now does not let us change this infrastructure at this point until such time that the planning has been approved completely. We have 70% of all of this material for this plan, 2026, 2029. We're in the right conditions to incorporate all of these new tools that the planning establishes for this electric network. Regards to the reports that are pending, we foresee that the main reports at the end of March should be ready, with the measures and recommendations will be incorporated into that report.
With regards to the regulator, as far as we know, files have been open and research is being done. They've asked information from the sector, and as it was recognized by the ministry, from 67 companies that they were asked for information, we have been the only one that has been totally transparent with the data and the origins. File is going to be ready, and what step will be taken once we know its content? Your turn. Thank you, Javier. Thank you for your questions. With regards to the plan and the period and how long it lasts, we've decided. Well, you know, it has to do with the visibility that we have and the commitments that we have to assume with the market.
As we were saying before, we are very clear and we are certain that our the period of 2026 to 2029 is very clear, and we do have a certain sort of visibility or, not so much commitment for executing between nine, 2030 and 2031, because as you said, approval of the new planning. What is true is that we have moved forward with significant projects that will be up and running around about 2029, and right now we don't know if it's going to be in 2030 or if it might be delayed till 2031. That's why we have not wanted to have a firm commitment with the market beyond 2029.
What is true is that the visibility that we have of putting in service or the up and running that we can get by the end of 2031 is quite clear, actually. Once we have reflected the level of the RAB of EUR 15 billion is also an objective that is something that we can attain. Of course, we have assumed there's financial commitments. It is more complicated to do it in such long term. We wanted to give a reliable sort information and things that we know that we'll be able to comply for right now and then wait until we have proper approval of the necessary matters to be able to commit to things after 2021 for, like, 2030 and 2031.
What is true is that the visibility that we have now, and we're talking about the years 30, 31, we're talking about volumes that are above EUR 4 billion in those two years, so we'll have to wait to see that we do have a proper plan to be able to be much more concrete on this matter. In any case, the visibility that we're giving now, as far as the evolution of the RAB, is truthful, and we wanted to assume financial commitments up to 2029, where we have greater certitudes. Emilio, would you like to answer the next question? Thank you, Javier.
With regards to what you said about hybrid debt, we want to have EUR 2 billion of hybrid bonds at the end of our plan, which bring us close to the maximum capacity that we have for that instrument, so they will be able to be qualified as equity content as far as our rating agencies are concerned. It's true that the accounting treatment that we're giving to euros and payment for the interest is also registered within all of our equity and the profit of loss. Also the increase of, well, you know, the interest rates of the hybrids, if we were to account for them within our results, the average insert result that we would have is, would be less than 1% of these emissions throughout the next few years. Thank you.
Next question comes from Ignacio Domenech from JB Capital. Hello, thank you very much for the presentation and for answering our questions. Mine is about your rating. In 2029, you're setting up a guideline for a net debt exceeding 14%, and I understand that unless the S&P rating changes, that would not be compatible with maintaining BBB+. Considering your talks with rating agencies, do you expect them to soften these targets, this guidance, or perhaps it's not a priority for you to hold on to? Financial solvency, well, historically, and obviously as part of this plan, Red Eléctrica's priority is maintaining a solid credit rating without committing to a different rating.
Certainly, our investment volume will bring us close to financial ratios that might maintain the company in BBB+, just as will happen to other peers in the same field. Based on the analysis we have conducted on financial ratios, we're confident that we will remain there without making a firm commitment to any rating whatsoever. Our priority is remaining financially solid to tackle our strategic plan and maybe future developments too. Consistently with other recent reviews from other agencies, we do expect to maintain that BBB+.
on credit solvency, that's what we expect from the outcome of rating agencies reports. They will have to assess a different Redeia without Hispasat in the group, and with a vision, a different vision on the April 28 incident that differs from the view when the incident had just happened. In financial terms and in terms of debt, I am convinced that we will still have a good credit rating, and we expect a revision that will keep us at BBB+. Next question from Gonzalo Sanchez from UBS. Please, you have the floor. Thank much. Good morning to all of you, and thank you for your presentation. I have a couple of questions. The first one has to do...
First of all, I'd like to understand the possible leveraging that we have because of the risk of these figures going up and down, as you presented today, regarding investments, and let me explain myself. Is there is an additional delay from we're waiting as far as, like, the approval of the investment plans, then I assume this could generate two situations, one would be that the investments are more expensive than what we foresee due to inflation. In the second place, the part that's not insured, you know, that 30% that is not insured would be open to these fluctuations. I'd like to understand, how are you considering this with regards to possible risks, to going up or going down? As far as I understand, according to a new regulation, there is a certain pass-through.
Still, I wonder, how would you consider this from a mathematical standpoint? That's it, you know, going up, going down, but especially if it's going down. As far as going up is concerned, you have given a delivery throughout 2026. Very interesting, as far as the EBITDA margin, which is much higher than what was considered in the plan. Now I understand that you're taking a much more conservative point of view as far as the increase of these margins. I'd like to understand what type of leverage the company has to be able to improve that result. Generally speaking, any kind of upside or downside in this sense would be interesting. The second question has to do with what was mentioned about the rating.
Due to the conversations we had before, I will understand that that 14% would be within the ranges of triple of two of these rating agencies. I'd like to understand, what is the type of conversation that's happening with this? On that subject matter, are you expecting a change? If there is going to be a change, what kind of impact could that have in the plan? With greater flexibility, I mean, what would the impact be in the plan? Thank you. Thank you very much, Gonzalo. Very well. With regards to the commitment for investment, 26 to 31, well, this is actually quite... You're right in what you say. There is a potential for delay in the planning, and if it were significant, it could affect it a bit.
I want to remind you that there is a volume for investment, which is a volume that is really quite important. These monies, they come from the planning that we have now, and then we're putting it in. Corresponds to that, the monies that we have, at least for the next three and a half years, and it's real and true. Of course, there will be something pending for the approval, for the planning, but we have this intuition, and due to the interest that is needed for the deployment of these infrastructures, that it can be a quick approval in this very year. We also have mechanisms that might be taking place throughout the strategic plan period in order to accelerate these periods and to be able to compensate a potential delay.
As far as investment is concerned, I think it's really quite. The certitude level is quite high. We haven't wanted to commit beyond 2029, because then between 2030, 2031, will need to be approved later on. As far as the per- plan period, these objectives are really quite firm. With regards to possible price evolution, I don't think we're in the situation we lived through two or three years ago. We do see that most of the supplies and the equipment have stabilized the prices, and in those critical supplies, with a greater demand, we have acted or jumped the gun, as it were, then that is much more concrete. We don't see any difficulties or any potential changes.
Gonzalo, the new framework that we have for regulations and retributions also gives us Well, it permits us to assume various deviations as far as the cost of this is concerned. We're really quite comfortable in our objectives and the evolution of investment. What we can add to operating profit from a strategic plan and the ups and downs, the company has to have enough means to be able to face this growth, and it is a process that we have already started, and that will continue throughout this year and part of 2027. That, in fact, it does affect the rates of the EBITDA and its efficiency.
Remember that we're starting with a volume that was quite relevant at the end of 2029, and of course, those ratios are going to affect, have an effect, and of course, it'll be much more efficient in the future. We have decided to be conservative as far as exploitation expenses are concerned, to be able to maintain the growth that we're talking about. Just another thing, let's talk a little bit more about that, the efficiencies that we see as far as financial structure is concerned for the costs of the equity, and also some thoughts about the rating. I also, Gonzalo, wanted to tell you what I was saying before with regards to the rating agencies and the rapprochement that they as to them.
As we said before, the context of the company has changed radically from the last few revisions or reviews, and the focus on regulated activity is much clearer. really, what we expect to see is a treatment similar to other companies within Europe that have these same types of ratios, that are going to be better than what have been applied to us, in other years and in Spain in other years. I believe that the relationship we have with these agencies is quite close. We do believe that this horizon of a triple plus, B+, is the horizon that we think that we can reach.
However, in a hypothetical case, that there's a much more investment or a much more restrictive position from the agencies, I'd like to remind you that we still have leveraging or hedging within the company to be able to reinforce this financial structure of the group if it is needed. Thank you. Continuing with what you said, first of all, talking about ratios, I think it's really important to highlight that these ratios of credit ratios are very solid, and it's important to highlight that. Quite sincerely, we think they are clearly compatible with a BBB+, as far as our agencies are concerned, and even a AAA, and we think that that will be the qualification that we will achieve from now on, a AAA.
We're looking at a solid investment grade, but in any case, this is a decision that has to be taken by both agencies according to what they want to do and Standard & Poor's and the others. As far as the upsides are concerned, adding something and some aspects that Roberto was saying, I also think it's important to say that from a financial point of view, we see upsides quite clearly by improving our costs of the debt compared to what we have in the pre-tax 6.30%, 6.58%, and in any case, we're going to have a average financial cost that's going to be better than what we've already shown.
Also, what's improves this, 46%, bearing in mind is this, how solid we are in our balance sheets and our projections and all of these things, we believe that we're going to have higher leverage than 46%, keeping that solid investment grade. By combining these two factors, better hedging and better cost of our debt, which is highly competitive, will permit us to create value. As you heard not too long ago, to be able to get return on investment, above 9%, and one of the important leverages that we have to have that ROI that is so attractive to create value for our shareholders, has to do with our capacity for hedging and to be able to get into debt at a very competitive cost.
Next question from Fernando Garcia from RBC Capital Markets. Fernando, please go ahead. Good day, everyone, thank you for taking our questions. I only have one question after everything you've said, and it's about the incentives you're using for your net guidance for 2029. Emilio, you just talked about financial performance, so are you also considering operational up performance, and are you using any of that for your 2029 guideline? Are you considering any incentives to generate some upside for your 2029 guidance? Excellent. Thank you very much, Fernando, for your question. Well, about the level of incentives we have integrated into the plan, as you know, our approach is usually very conservative, so we prefer not to include any kind of incentives into the base case scenario we presented today.
There might be an upside, but we don't want to make any comment on that. At an operational level, we're also being conservative in the hypothesis we have included into the plan. Certainly, via integrating new asset management policies and new elements related to innovation, we might Just might achieve some operational efficiencies within the model. Perhaps just to give you a flavor on it, well, there's a remuneration back for work in progress, and that affects the investment portfolio we have planned within the plan. Another part of the portfolio is not affected, but the way it is conceived, it might represent a loss of return in terms of the financial remuneration rate.
That deficit generated by not applying work in progress to the whole asset base can be offset, and as Emilio was saying, via financial management, with medium and final costs of debt under the regulation threshold established in the FRR, we can generate value above that 9% return on equity we're considering.
Thank you. There are no further questions in Spanish. We will now take questions.
Perfect. Thank you. As a reminder, if you'd like to ask a question via the telephone lines, you can do so by pressing star followed by one on your telephone keypads now. If you choose to withdraw your question, please press star followed by two. When preparing to ask your question, please ensure you are unmuted locally. Our first question comes from Arturo Murua of Jefferies. Arturo, your line is open. Please go ahead. Arturo, your line is open. Please proceed with your question and unmute yourself locally. Arturo, please make sure you're unmuted locally on your device. We are not receiving any audio question from Arturo's line. As a reminder, it is star followed by one.
Well, it doesn't seem like there were any further questions, we go on to the questions we have received online. Most of them have already been answered. Daniel Rodríguez asks us the estimated cost of hybrid bonds and whether or not it is contemplated into the 3.3% contemplated and the estimated cost of debt. Mafalda Pombeiro has two quick questions: The EUR 6 billion CapEx target, is it gross or net of subsidies? What would be the investment pace of the plan? Is it a continuous, year-on-year, or does it follow a growing progression? Well, thank you. The cost of the hybrid instruments we're contemplating is approximately 4%-5%. Certainly, as you know, the market is looking very attractive now, and if we were to invest, we would come very close to that 4%.
That 3.3% we set up as average financial cost for 2029 does not integrate hybrid instruments. It does integrate the cost of funding of our telecom business and our international business, which are funded mostly in US dollars. As I said before, during the presentation, our average funding cost in the plan is 2.8%. If we were to integrate 50% of the cost of hybrids, that would take us to 3%. If we consider the entire cost of hybrids, that would bring us to approximately 3.2%. Perhaps to answer Mafalda, just to clarify the numbers, those EUR 6 billion in investment are a gross number.
We can consider an average annual investment of EUR 1.5 billion, going slightly up or down one year or the next, but we consider EUR 1.5 billion as an annual average. It is important to remember that we're providing bar references, and those sums are net of subsidies and European funds, so it will be directly direct remuneration. I think it's important that to round up the answer for Mafalda. With this, we've finished today's presentation. As usual, our investors relations team remains available to you if you have any further consultations. Other than that, thank you very much.