Participation in public affairs

Iberdrola is regularly present in public and private associations, participates in public consultation processes, and maintains contacts with public administrations, among other activities. This participation is governed by compliance with the laws of each country, as well as with Iberdrola's internal policies and regulations, including, among others:

• Company by-laws
• Corporate Purpose and Values [PDF] 
• Code of Conduct for Directors, Professionals and Suppliers [PDF]
• Sustainable Development Policy
• Stakeholder Engagement Policy
• Policy on Respect for Human Rights
• Anti-Corruption and Anti-Fraud Policy

In such activities, Iberdrola assumes and promotes the basic principles of legality, loyalty, trust, professionalism, cooperation, reciprocity and good faith.

In line with its strategy, one of the most significant issues that Iberdrola addresses in its public activities is its role as a driver for: (1) electrification across all industries, (2) massive investments in renewables and energy infrastructure with the goal of tripling global renewable energy capacity by 2030, and (3) the adoption of a just, affordable and secure energy transition that creates jobs and industrial opportunities. In this regard, Iberdrola promotes the approval of objectives and frameworks for climate policies in line with the Paris Agreement from an ambitious perspective that creates value for society as a whole. 

Transparency

In line with the Iberdrola group's principle of transparency, below is a list of the participation of Iberdrola and the companies of the group in national and international associations and public consultation processes, as well as contacts with regulatory entities and financial contributions to political parties outside of Spanish territory.

This section does not contain information relating to Avangrid in compliance with United States of America legislation, so please refer to Avangrid's corporate website: https://www.avangrid.com/es/public-advocacy

Participation in national and international associations

Iberdrola participates, both at the global level and in the countries in which it has a presence, in various entities and associations defending its business interests and those of its main Stakeholders.

As indicated above, the company decides on its participation in these organisations taking into account consistency with the Corporate Purpose and Values, among which the energy transition and the fight against climate change are of paramount importance.

In 2024, the companies that make up the Iberdrola Group participated in 373 organisations, contributing to their support through the payment of membership fees and other items. 

Below is a graph describing the distribution of financial contributions to the associations to which it belonged in 2024:

A list of the main national and international associations to which Iberdrola and the companies of its Group belonged in 2024 can be found in the Statement of non-financial information.

In this area, the Group carries out an annual analysis of the degree of alignment of these organisations with the company's Statement of commitment to sustainable development, including: respect for and defence of Human Rights and the fight against climate change. 

The Group's professionals responsible for the engagement with each association carry out the alignment analysis, taking into account the extent to which the positions and objectives pursued by these organisations and the activities they carry out are consistent with the aforementioned frameworks.

Both the publicly available information on the associations and the knowledge acquired by Iberdrola through participation in their committees and/or working groups are analysed, considering elements such as the real support for the achievement of a net zero emissions target in 2050, the deployment of renewable technologies according to the pace neccesary to achieve this emission reduction and the application of the just transition principles on this path. 

As a result of this assessment, the positioning of the organisations is classified as aligned with, partially aligned⁽¹⁾ or non-aligned to that maintained by the company in this area, and serves as a basis for decision-making regarding Iberdrola's future participation therein.

It should be noted that this alignment analysis excludes associations in which Avangrid participates as a result of the aforementioned legal restrictions. However, Avangrid's Code of Business Conduct and Ethics includes guidance on participation in political and civic activities, and the company has adopted its Political Education Protocol to assist employees in this area and to ensure that such activities are aligned with the company's stated policies and purpose.

The result of the analysis conducted in 2024 shows that 70.5%⁽¹⁾  of the organisations in which Iberdrola participates are aligned with the company's Statement of commitment to sustainable development, respect for and defence of Human Rights and the fight against climate change. The 29.2% of cases are partially aligned, and 0.3% corresponds to organisations whose positioning is not aligned with Iberdrola’s statement.

In these cases, in which there is not complete alignment of the organisations with Iberdrola's position, the company continuously evaluates the suitability of its participation therein in order to defend its thesis and, thus, its interests and those of its Stakeholders. Iberdrola also works actively within them to promote its defence of the Paris Agreement and the energy transition.

(1) This chart does not take into account organisations of which Avangrid is a member due to the legal restrictions mentioned above.

Detailed analysis for key organizations and management of misalignment cases 

Based on the global assessment indicated above, Iberdrola delves into a specific analysis of a group of organisations that are particularly relevant for their leadership, influence and contribution to the main processes of developing climate policies and promoting the energy transition. 

The methodology for selection follows the following relevance criteria: 1) their active participation in the global climate agenda or in the elaboration of the main regulatory packages in the field of the energy transition; 2) presence of global actors in their membership; 3) leadership exhibited at international climate change summits (COPs); 4) the geographic reach of their campaigns and the impact they have on governments and the media.

Taking into account the above, in 2024 Iberdrola carried out a specific analysis of 74 organizations, including industrial and sectoral associations, alliances, foundations, think tanks, NGOs and other international organizations. 

For each of them, this extended analysis specifically details: 

• the objectives they pursue, 
• the main advocacy activities in which they have been involved, as well as  
• the specific role played by Iberdrola in its governing bodies and in the execution of the main activities they carry out. 

The analysis also includes an assessment of the degree of alignment of each organization with the practical implementation of the Paris Agreement and the promotion of the energy transition. To this end, Iberdrola has created an objective and scientifically based analysis methodology that considers elements such as the support granted by the organization to: 

• the science of climate change, 
• the achievement of a Net Zero emissions target by 2050, 
• interim commitments (to 2030) consistent with the 1.5°C target; 
• and the deployment of green technologies and just transition.

Finally, the conclusions of the analysis also allow us to identify the options available to the company to redirect possible episodes of misalignment between the activities of the organization and the elements indicated above. 

• For more information on the organizations subject to this detailed alignment analysis click on the following link [PDF].
• For more information on the methodology used for this analysis and the framework for managing possible episodes of misalignment click on the following link [PDF].

Participation in public consultation processes

The company also actively participates in the public consultations carried out by regulatory entities to obtain the opinion of the agents involved on regulatory initiatives and national and European energy policies. In addition, it participates in the official Direct Advocacy processes for processing regulations and in monitoring their application. In all of these processes, Iberdrola rigorously sets out these priorities: 1) Accelerate electrification in all industries; 2) Promoting massive investments in electric infrastructure and renewables; 3) Adopt a fair and secure energy transition that creates jobs and industrial opportunities.

In some of the markets in which the Group is present, these contributions to the legislative process are recorded in public transparency registers that make it possible to know the objectives of each process, as well as the specific contribution made by each organisation.

The main public consultation processes in which the companies of the Iberdrola Group have participated in 2024 can be found at the following link [PDF].

Contacts with public bodies

Iberdrola maintains regular contact with public bodies in order to convey its views and defend its business interests and those of its shareholders and customers. These contacts take various forms, ranging from face-to-face meetings with representatives of public administrations to the signing of agreements for cooperation and participation in initiatives and projects of common interest, also governed by the above priorities.

The most significant milestones in Iberdrola’s activity in this area in 2024 can be found at the following link [PDF].

Financial contributions to political parties

Iberdrola is a politically neutral company. 

In Spain, contributions to political parties are prohibited by the Iberdrola Code of Conduct.

In the financial year 2024, none of the group companies, with the exception of the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia, contributed to the financing of political parties.

In the Non-Financial Information Statement of the company more information could be found at this respect. 

Coordination of climate action at the company 

Iberdrola has an internal climate change working group that ensures the coordination and exchange of information regarding the company's climate action. All jurisdictions and relevant corporate areas, including communication, legal services, Corporate Sustainability, investor relations, regulation, etc., participate in this group. The group reports on the main milestones and progress relating to the global climate agenda as well as those relating to the main countries and areas (European Union) of interest to Iberdrola. It also sets out the lines of action followed and the strategies adopted for Iberdrola's participation in the main conversations, campaigns, high-level and technical forums, as well as in public consultation processes in the area of climate action.                                    

The climate change working group is a very useful tool for coordinating positions and actions internally, as well as for sharing and exchanging relevant information regarding climate action to be taken into account by the various areas and jurisdictions. This effort to coordinate and share information makes it possible to analyse the degree of alignment of the Company's actions with the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the promotion of the energy transition, as well as to ensure that this alignment is maintained in all cases – in accordance with the provisions of corporate policies.