Iberdrola, Spain’s largest electricity group, plans to float part of its renewable energy division as part of a reorganisation that would shield its conventional generating business from the high costs of rolling out new wind farms.

The company, which recently completed the €17.2bn takeover of Scottish Power, said yesterday it had won board approval to float up to 20 per cent of Iberenova, in which it will group its existing 4,500MW of wind energy with the 2,000MW of new capacity assumed through the acquisition.