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11/12/2019Iberdrola advances towards zero emissions in Europe by 2030 Iberdrola's Chairman and CEO, Ignacio Galán, stated today that the company will have virtually zero emissions in Europe by 2030 and maintained the commitment to achieve global emissions neutrality by 2050. The commitment was made to the Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, during his speech at the high-level meeting 'Caring for Climate', organized by the UN Global Compact at COP25. During his participation in the panel 'Our only future - the Role of the Private Sector in Reaching 1,5°C and Net-Zero', Galán discussed the company’s strategy to support the transition to a low-carbon economy, which began 20 years ago. As it stands today, Iberdrola’s emissions are a quarter of those of its European competitors. "Our commitment to renewable energy means we have already reached a level of zero emissions in many of the countries where we operate, such as the United Kingdom, Germany or Portugal," explained Galán. To reach this leadership position, Iberdrola has invested more than 100 billion dollars since 2001 in new renewable energy, smart grids and efficient storage and the company will continue to devote more than $10 billion per year to these activities. The investment has allowed the company to grow globally and become a world leader in wind power, network digitization and green finance. Ignacio Galán stated that Iberdrola's model shows that the transition to a green, low-carbon economy is a source of opportunities. He said: "We have supported transformation in intensive industries that were in decline, such as shipyards, and encouraged the launch of entirely new companies, like some of those working with us to deliver smart meters or components for photovoltaic plants or offshore wind farms." In this transition, the electricity sector, responsible for 25% of emissions, plays a key role: it is necessary to replace polluting technologies with renewable energy while promoting the electrification of other industries such as transport and heating. Galán also reiterated the need to take immediate action, in line with the ethos of COP25. "The energy transition is feasible. We have the necessary technology at an affordable cost, but we have little time. The time for action is now", said Galán. He added: "As the European Commission says, this is an opportunity for an industrial renaissance, creating jobs and wellbeing for everyone". Iberdrola against climate change Almost two decades ago Iberdrola identified that climate change was a real challenge for human kind that required urgent action, and understood that the electricity sector was key to providing solutions to combat this global problem. Following the approval of the Paris Agreement in 2015, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030, Iberdrola incorporated the goals in to its business strategy and corporate governance system. Aligned with activities, the company focuses their efforts on climate action (SDG 13) and on the supply of affordable and non-polluting energy (SDG 7). In the context of COP25, Iberdrola reiterates its commitment to a climate scenario fully aligned with a maximum temperature rise of 1.5°C and with an adequate framework of working conditions and fair transition for decarbonisation. Both commitments were formalised in September when the company signed two pledges proposed by Governments and organisations at the United Nations Climate Action Summit (UN Global Compact, BTeam and Spanish Government). READ MORE
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10/12/2019Iberdrola doubles its commitment to clean energy in Andalusia, with 1,100 new renewable MW Iberdrola doubles its commitment to clean energy in Andalusia, with more than 1,100 new renewable MW in the pipeline. The company, which has just begun the construction of its first photovoltaic plant in the region, has several photovoltaic projects and one wind farm project in the pipeline -all of them with access to the grid- in five provinces of the autonomous region. In Huelva, Iberdrola has planned photovoltaic plants with a total installed capacity of 420 MW. In this province, the company has begun the construction of its first photovoltaic plant in the region, Andévalo (50 MW), which will be operational in 2020. The project is built within the largest wind power complex in Continental Europe, Andévalo, promoted and managed by Iberdrola since 2010, and will guarantee the supply of green electricity to the four HEINEKEN Spain factories and their offices. The photovoltaic plant will avoid the emission into the atmosphere of more than 100,000 tonnes of CO2 per year and will help boost the economy and jobs. In Seville, pipeline projects cover a total of 150 photovoltaic MW and, in Granada, definite projects make up 300 MW of installed capacity. Iberdrola's renewable plans in the region are completed with 210 MW photovoltaic in Malaga, as well as a wind farm -Martín de Jara, with a capacity of 36 MW- and 30 photovoltaic MW in the province of Cadiz. The green energy production of these new projects will supply a population equivalent to 600,000 homes; similar for example to that of the city of Malaga. With these projects -whose construction is forecast for 2020 and 2021- Iberdrola is raising its commitment to clean energy in Andalusia and will double its renewable presence in the region, where it is already the leading wind farm developer, with a capacity of 856 MW installed in Huelva (292 MW), Granada (198 MW), Cadiz (167 MW), Malaga (133 MW), Almeria (50 MW) and Seville (16 MW). Renewable investment strategy in Spain Iberdrola's plan to invest in renewable energies in Spain includes the installation of 3,000 new MW by 2022. By 2030, company forecasts point to the installation of 10,000 new MW. These actions will enable jobs to be created for 20,000 people. At present, and with these processes under way, Iberdrola’s projects under construction or in the pipeline -wind and photovoltaic- in Spain total more than 3,600 MW in regions such as Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y León, Navarra, Aragon, Andalusia, Murcia and Cantabria. In Spain, Iberdrola is the leader wind developer -with an installed capacity of 5,793 MW- and renewable energy leader, with 16,027 MW installed (over 30,300 MW worldwide), making its generation fleet one of the cleanest in the energy sector. Iberdrola's commitment to a decarbonised economic model has led it to earmark 34 billion euros for global investments between now and 2022 in renewable energies, smart and robust distribution networks, and large-scale storage technologies, all on top of the 100 billion it has already invested in these areas since 2001. READ MORE
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05/12/2019COP25: EIB and Iberdrola sign two financing agreements for EUR 690m for renewable energy projects in Brazil and new digitalisation of electrical networks in Spain At the Climate Change Conference (COP25) being held in Madrid, the EIB and Iberdrola today announced two new agreements to promote climate action by investing in renewable energy projects and electricity distribution networks. To do so, the Vice-President of the EU bank Emma Navarro and the President of Iberdrola Ignacio Galán agreed two loans for a total of EUR 690m. EIB Vice-President Emma Navarro, head of climate action at the Bank and its operations in Spain and Latin America, remarked: “We are delighted to be signing these agreements at the Madrid Climate Change Conference, because they are a great example of the EIB’s efforts to support climate action inside and outside of Europe. To fulfil the objectives of the Paris Agreement, we need to mobilise resources on an unprecedented scale, and the EIB is seeking to lead the response to this challenge. We are the EU’s climate bank, and that is why we have strengthened our climate ambition. We are working on mobilising up to EUR 1tn over the coming decade through projects that, like the ones we are supporting today, are going to help with the transition towards a low-carbon economy by promoting renewable energies.” Ignacio Galán expressed his satisfaction for sealing this deal during the Climate Change Conference. “The byword for this COP is the need to start taking action, and that is what Iberdrola and the EIB are doing today: undertaking specific actions that will help to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5°C” He also said that Iberdrola “got a head-start with this transition 20 years ago, when we realised that the economy of the future had to be carbon-free. Since then, we have invested EUR 100bn in renewables, smart networks and efficient supply, becoming one of the world's largest utility companies.” The Iberdrola President also congratulated the EU bank on its decision to increase its climate ambition and to cease financing projects based on fossil fuels: “We all have to be part of the solution. As leaders in sustainable financing, we believe that agreements such as the ones we are signing today are essential to turning climate change into an opportunity and leaving an inhabitable planet for future generations.” Of the EUR 690m total, EUR 250m will go to financing the construction of 15 wind farms to be developed in the country by Neoenergia, the Iberdrola subsidiary in Brazil. These new facilities will be located in three states in the north east: Paraíba, Bahía and Piauí. Once operational, they will have a total installed power of 520 MW and produce an annual average of 2,300 GWh of clean energy. Commissioning these wind farms will help to reduce CO₂ emissions and increase the proportion of renewable energy in the country’s electricity generation. The investments in these new wind farms will be made over a five-year period and will enable the creation of 2,300 jobs. Iberdrola, through Neoenergia, has become one of Brazil’s two largest electricity utilities by number of customers, with 13.9 million supply points. The company combines electricity generation, distribution, transmission, and retail activities in a concession area spanning 835,000 square kilometers. Iberdrola’s Brazilian subsidiary operates 3,700 MW generation capacity, 88% of which are renewable energy. If projects under construction are included, capacity jumps to 4,550 MW. The EIB is granting this financing under the Latin America lending mandate 2014–2020, meaning that the agreement is covered by the EU budget guarantee. By supporting this project, the EU bank is helping to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations. The EIB has been working in Latin America for some 30 years and one of the major priorities in the region is to promote climate action. Smart electricity networks in Spain The EU bank and Iberdrola have also joined forces to develop digitalisation of infrastructure essential to the decarbonisation of the economy: the electricity distribution networks. To do so, they have agreed a EUR 440m loan to finance new investments in Spain for infrastructure to help improve the reliability of the network and the quality of supply. These networks are key to the energy transition, as they enable the integration of more renewables, sustainable mobility, smart cities and decentralised consumption. Transforming the networks into smart infrastructure that is more reliable and more secure puts consumers at the centre of the business, giving them greater decision-making power and connectivity. Iberdrola, through its distribution company i-DE, operates 270,000 km of electricity grids in Spain, serving 17 million people. Over the past few years, the company has invested EUR 2 billion in grid digitisation by installing 11 million smart meters and supporting infrastructure while adapting 90,000 substations which now incorporate remote management, monitoring and automation capabilities. The EIB and climate action The EIB is among the world's largest multilateral providers of climate finance. The Bank’s goal is to be a leader in mobilising the finance needed to keep global warming under 2°C and to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C in order to meet the Paris Agreement objectives. On 14 November, the EIB Board of Directors approved its new climate objectives and the new energy lending policy. The Bank will gradually increase its financing for climate and environmental objectives up to 50% by 2025, with the goal of ensuring that the EIB Group mobilises at least EUR 1bn by 2030 to promote investments helping to meet these objectives. It also announced its intention to align all EIB Group activities with the Paris Agreement. To this end, the EIB will cease financing fossil fuel-based projects from late 2021. The EIB is the world's largest issuer of green bonds and was the first organisation to make an issue on this market in 2007. In 2018, the EIB provided almost EUR 1.3bn to support climate action in Spain by financing projects involving the development of cleaner means of transport and implementation of new, less polluting and more environmentally friendly production processes. The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. The EIB makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy objectives. Spain: EIB grants EUR 50m loan to Iberdrola and Caja Rural de Navarra to build new wind complex in Navarra Iberdrola, a reference in climate action Iberdrola is a global leader in the energy market, the leading supplier of wind power and one of the largest electricity companies by market capitalisation in the world. The group supplies energy to some 100 million people in dozens of countries, such as Spain, the UK (ScottishPower), the USA (AVANGRID), Brazil (Neoenergia), Mexico, Germany, Portugal, Italy and France. With a workforce of some 34 000 employees and assets exceeding EUR 113bn, it turned over EUR 35 075.9m and made a net profit of EUR 3.014m in 2018. Iberdrola is leading the energy transition towards a sustainable model through its investments in renewable energies, smart networks, large-scale energy storage and digital transformation to offer its clients cutting-edge products and services. With its commitment to clean energy, it is one of the companies with the lowest emissions and sets an international example with its contribution to climate action and sustainability. The company is the world’s largest issuer of green bonds, with some EUR 10bn issued since 2014, and has agreed loans for around EUR 1.5bn, as well as credit lines subject to sustainability conditions for nearly EUR 9bn. READ MORE
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04/12/2019The acting minister for Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, on the Iberdrola stand The acting minister for Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, visited Iberdrola's stand in the green zone at COP25 which is currently taking place until 13 December in Madrid. On the stand she met with the Chairman and Chief Executive of the group, Ignacio Galán, and Claire Perry O’Neill, former British Minister of State for Energy and Clean Growth and president of COP26, which is to be held in 2020 in Glasgow. Situated in the Green Zone — open to anyone attending the summit venue — the Iberdrola stand is a sustainable space that demonstrates the leadership of the company in the fight against climate change. To achieve this, the company is offering specialised talks and audiovisual content to explain the group's main milestones, its emissions reduction commitments and its emblematic projects , as well as the initiatives being rolled out to raise awareness about the climate challenge and promote universal access to energy . READ MORE
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03/12/2019"We Basque businesses learned generations ago that companies must innovate or cease to exist" Iberdrola group chairman and chief executive Ignacio Galán took part in a work meeting at Torre Iberdrola this morning on the fiscal incentive programme for innovation launched by the Provincial Government of Bizkaia. During his talk, Galán said that “in the future, businesses must either be innovative or they will cease to exist. We Basque companies have understood this for generations”. He used Iberdrola as an example of this: “We are what we are today because of a spirit of continuous improvement that has driven us to become pioneers in technology and industrialisation, opening up new markets beyond our borders.” Galán also congratulated the president of Bizkaia, Unai Rementeria, who was at the meeting, for his well-conceived initiative in creating an instrument “based on looking upon taxation as not just a means of raising funds in the short term but also as a way of creating wealth and employment, attracting and retaining talent and encouraging investment and technological progress”. “Since it came into being, in less than five months we have launched several projects in collaboration with companies like Ormazabal, Afesa, Ingeteam and Arteche”, said Ignacio Galán, who went on to invite “the hundreds of Basque businesses that are our suppliers to work with us to keep making this programme a catalyst for the success of industry in this land”. Galán also said that “the search for new production and consumption models is crucial to securing social, economic and environmental sustainability on our planet”, a matter which, he pointed out, is currently a topic for discussion at the Climate Summit in Madrid (COP25), whose slogan is ‘Time to act’. On this subject, the chairman of Iberdrola explained that “we must increase investment in economic sectors that can contribute to speedier and more efficient decarbonization, like the electricity industry. Technological development of renewables, smart grids and storage enable the electrification of sectors like transport, heating and refrigeration, as well as numerous production processes in totally safe, competitive conditions”. On this he added, “we Basque businesses, many of which are represented here, clearly lead these sectors in Europe”, concluding by underlining that “seizing this opportunity means continuing to innovate in an increasingly competitive environment”. READ MORE
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02/12/2019Ignacio Galán attends the reception held at the Royal House on occasion of the COP25 The President and CEO of Iberdrola group, Ignacio Galán, attended the reception that, on occasion of the COP25 inauguration in Madrid, was offered by His and Her Majesty the King and Queen to the heads of state and government who have come to the Spanish capital to attend the summit. Referring to the slogan of the summit, "It's time to act," don Felipe said that "there are no borders that can protect us from the effects of climate change. We cannot postpone decision-making: we must act from a shared leadership and firmly”. "We are still in time, but we can't afford to doubt. Yes, there is hope, but there is also a lot of work to be done, and it will very possibly take several generations to achieve it," he said. The Conference of the Parties (COP) is the supreme decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This twenty-fifth edition is being held under the presidency of Chile, although it is based in Madrid, and under this edition the 197 participating parties — 196 countries plus the European Union — will seek to advance towards the implementation of the agreements made in the Convention to reach the climate neutrality objective by 2050, and agree new national commitments to reduce emissions by 2030. READ MORE
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01/12/2019Moving for Climate NOW arrives at COP25 and delivers its Manifesto to the United Nations The Moving for Climate NOW cycle initiative, promoted by Iberdrola with support from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and COP25, arrived at the Climate Summit today, which starts in Madrid tomorrow under the presidency of Chile. After leaving Salamanca last Tuesday and after more than 500 kilometres travelling by electric bicycle through Castilla-León, Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha and the Comunidad de Madrid, the Moving for Climate NOW team has delivered its Manifesto for Climate Action to the Executive Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. During the meeting, on the eve of the COP, Ignacio S. Galán, chairman of Iberdrola, stressed that "we have a moral obligation to combat climate change and to leave a habitable world for future generations.” During his address he added: “The decade which is about to begin must be the decade of action and 2020 the year of ambition: the Paris Agreement is already in force and we must harness all available resources to comply with it” The Deputy Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC, Ovais Sarmad, thanked the Moving for Climate NOW cyclists for their efforts “because they send a very strong message to the world. And the message is: the fight against climate change requires participation from all segments of society.” Sarmad explained that “To bring a systemic change and address the climate emergency, we need governments, the private sector, institutions and individuals to work together in urgently scaling up their efforts to reduce emissions.” According to the climate champion of this COP25 and representative of the Chilean Presidency, Gonzalo Muñoz, this initiative is “an example that we must escalate to other areas of society in order to promote clean mobility and renewable energy.” Muñoz also pointed out that this move “reflects the support that the government and people of Spain are offering to Chile for the purposes of the summit.” The fifth Moving for Climate NOW team, comprising some fifty representatives from several organisations and countries, was also received by the mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, the high commissioner for the 2030 Agenda of the Spanish government, Cristina Gallach, and the chairman of IFEMA, Clemente González. The Manifesto delivered today sets out, point by point, the fundamental principles on which this team believes action is needed to address climate challenges and meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement. It points to "the need for increased climate ambition and a shift towards scenarios that limit the increase in global average temperatures to 1.5ºC, which involves achieving zero net emissions by 2050". To achieve this, the following advances must be made: * The urgency of uniting efforts in all areas, ensuring support measures for the most vulnerable. * The importance of seeing the fight against climate change as an opportunity to build a sustainable economic model, rather than as a threat. * The need to accelerate the energy transition by committing to renewable energy. * The importance of mobilising resources to improve climate adaptation. The fifth ‘Moving for Climate NOW’ Moving for Climate NOW has now completed its fifth edition, with the cycling team having already travelled more than 3,700 kilometres since the first one, which took them from Bilbao to COP21 in Paris. They then reached the COP22 in Marrakech from Seville, the COP23 in Bonn from Paris and the COP24 in Katowice, Poland, from Vienna. In all five expeditions, participants used electric bicycles with the intention of showing the viability of an alternative, healthy and environmentally friendly means of transport on a long-distance route. The expedition also verified its emissions with CeroCO2 and offset its carbon footprint by buying carbon credits on the United Nations “Climate Neutral Now” and Zero Emissions platforms. The Moving for Climate NOW initiative is aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is particularly linked to Goal 13 - Climate Action - and Goal 17 - Partnerships to Achieve the Goals. It also contributes to points 5 -gender equality- and 7 -affordable and non-polluting energy-. Over the last five years, Moving for Climate NOW has included representatives from international organisations such as the European Commission, the European Investment Bank, the United Nations Convention for Climate Change (UNFCC), the World Resources Institute (WRI), the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA); institutions such as the Spanish Office of Climate Change, the Moroccan Economic, Social and Environmental Council, the Biodiversity Foundation and Seville City Council; initiatives such as the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), as well as civil society through NGOs including ECODES, the Red Cross and ActionAid, and universities such as Comillas Pontifical University and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and the Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD). READ MORE
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29/11/2019Iberdrola and IFEMA join forces to promote electric mobility and launch the first sustainable car park in a Spanish exhibition centre Iberdrola and IFEMA have decided to join together in their strategies to promote transport electrification, by signing an agreement making the energy utility IFEMA's strategic partner in promoting sustainable mobility through a number of different actions. The first initiative in this partnership has been to implement the first sustainable public car park in a Spanish exhibition centre. The car park will be operational from tomorrow and will be made available to attendees at the World Climate Summit (COP 25), which IFEMA is hosting from next week until 13 December. The strategic alliance was signed this morning by Iberdrola Spain's CEO, Ángeles Santamaría, and IFEMA's Executive Committee president, Clemente González Soler, who both visited the new green car park, called the ' Iberdrola electric charging car park', where they carried out the first electric charging. The infrastructure deployed at IFEMA by Iberdrola allows the simultaneous charging of 34 electric vehicles and is part of other initiatives that both companies will develop jointly, such as organising and participating in activities to raise awareness and promote electric mobility . This is in line with its strategy to promote the transition towards a more sustainable and competitive energy model and to move forward in the decarbonisation of the economy. “The strategic agreement reached emphasises the importance of working together with all the players involved in sustainable mobility. With IFEMA we have found a perfect ally to move forward with setting up charging solutions to meet the challenges of electric mobility, based on clean energy free of CO2 emissions,” explains Ángeles Santamaría, CEO of Iberdrola Spain. She also points out that “transport electrification, together with the unstoppable growth of electricity generated from renewable sources, will make a decisive contribution in reducing pollution in our cities and increasing energy efficiency”. For his part, the Executive Committee president of IFEMA, Clemente González Soler, pointed out that "this alliance in which Iberdrola becomes a strategic partner of the institution is a decisive step in our Social Responsibility policy and in our commitment to the United Nations Global Compact. It has not taken long for this agreement to take its first practical step, with the inauguration of the first electric charging car park in a Spanish exhibition centre. Its launch will coincide with the biggest political event on the environment, namely the World Climate Summit, which IFEMA has had the honour of producing and hosting in Spain." Green energy and digital solutions The 'Iberdrola electric charging car park', which according to estimates could be used to charge 13,000 electric vehicles a year, will provide 100% green energy from cleanly generated sources, with Guarantee of Renewable Origin certificates (GOs). Based on this use, 226 tonnes of CO2 would be prevented from being emitted into the atmosphere annually. In addition, the users of this facility at IFEMA will be able to carry out the charging in a simple and digital way, through Iberdrola's Public Charging app, which allows them to geolocate, book and pay by mobile phone. Leading the energy transition The agreement reached this morning is part of Iberdrola’s plans to promote and lead the energy transition to sustainable mobility and the electrification of transport as a way to fight climate change. Iberdrola is rolling out a Sustainable Mobility Plan that envisages the deployment of 25,000 electric vehicle charging stations in Spain by 2021, aimed at homes and businesses, as well as publicly accessible urban and inter-urban areas. The plan includes installing fast, super-fast and ultra-fast charging stations on the main motorways and highways, reaching all provincial capitals and making it possible to drive all the way across Spain in an electric vehicle. Iberdrola is working on different initiatives to 'mobilise' all the agents involved in sustainable mobility, from governments to institutions, companies and electric vehicle manufacturers. The company has recently become the first Spanish business to subscribe to The Climate Group’s EV100 initiative, with the aim of accelerating the transition towards electric vehicles with a commitment to electrify its entire fleet of vehicles and allow its staff to charge their vehicles at its businesses in Spain and the United Kingdom by 2030. IFEMA Mobility Strategy Within IFEMA's Social Responsibility policy, the commitment to sustainable mobility, applied through its main trade fairs in the automotive sector, as well as through its own institutional policies, represents a key factor in managing different initiatives and partnerships, such as that signed with Iberdrola, which becomes a strategic partner in the field of mobility and transport electrification. A partnership that will make it possible to build an informative framework to convey messages to both the business sector and the public in order to raise conscientiousness towards an ecologically and environmentally favourable transition through the use of electric cars. Hence this first major initiative, with Iberdrola, to introduce a car park reserved for charging electrical vehicles into its parking areas, available to the over 4 million people who visit IFEMA every year. Also in the area of environmental responsibility, IFEMA has been undertaking various actions aimed at generating the least environmental impact, such as the construction of a geothermal plant for the climate control energy supply in the exhibition centre's main building in Madrid and the use of low-consumption LED lighting in the 200,000 m2 of exhibition space spread around 12 halls, which represents a saving of 897.57 tonnes of CO2 emissions, equivalent to that generated by 600 vehicles per year. In addition, IFEMA has recently joined the United Nations Global Compact and is committed to aligning its activities and events with the SDGs. READ MORE
