News
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11/05/2022Iberdrola and Caixa Capital Risc invest €2.5 million in Barbara IoT Iberdrola, through Perseo, its programme to promote the development of technology companies, and Caixa Capital Risc, through its Criteria Venture Tech fund, have joined forces to boost the digitalisation of smart grids and cybersecurity by investing €2.5 million in Barbara IoT. The Spanish start-up led by David Purón and Isidro Nistal has created an operating system to connect and protect industrial equipment with an anti-hacker shield. Barbara IoT , founded in 2016 and based in Biscay, receives this capital injection to consolidate its leadership in the smart grid sector and expand into new markets. Through its software, the company captures data from sensors and industrial equipment, and executes Artificial Intelligence algorithms to detect anomalies or automate processes in real time. All this without the need to use the cloud, reducing costs for its customers while drastically reducing the risks of cyber-attacks. This last factor is key for critical sectors such as electricity, infrastructure and utilities, among others, where Barbara IoT already works with clients such as Iberdrola itself or Cellnex, Red Eléctrica Group, DIA Group and Global Omnium. "We want to be the reference for the deployment of edge computing," says David Purón, co-founder and CEO of Barbara IoT. "We already work with multinationals in sectors such as electricity, water management, critical infrastructure and telecommunications, and this round will allow us to scale in these markets and accelerate our expansion in Europe. The technology developed by Barbara IoT, which allows real-time processing and analysis of data from photovoltaic plants, high and medium voltage grids, as well as substations, will enable the Spanish company to develop formulas that will accelerate the development of smart grids, positioning Barbara IoT as the benchmark in IoT (Internet of Things) and edge computing deployments in the energy sector. The funds GoHub, Bizkaia Seed Capital and Basque Fondo, which became shareholders of the company in 2020, complete this round that will additionally enable the implementation of Barbara's technology in other industrial sectors with high cybersecurity requirements. Smart grids and start-ups Óscar Cantalejo, head of investment for the PERSEO programme , said: "The collaboration with Barbara IoT is part of our commitment to the most promising start-ups through PERSEO and helps to reinforce our leadership in the digitalisation of smart grids, one of the growth vectors of the future. In addition to the equity stake, we will contribute our knowledge of the energy sector to accelerate the company's growth. With this investment, Iberdrola is making progress in the digitalisation of grids, one of its future growth vectors through direct investment in this start-up, with which it is working on the development of Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Energy Transition (IA4TES Artificial Intelligence Missions Project) and with i-DE, Iberdrola's electricity distribution brand in Spain. In addition, the energy company is consolidating its relationship with Barbara IoT, which is part of the Global Smart Grids Innovation Hub, its own innovation centre that aims to contribute to the energy transition. Roma Jelinskaite, who led the deal for Caixa Capital Risc, says he believes the next phase of Industry 4.0 will focus on edge computing. "The way industrial companies work is increasingly moving away from a centralised cloud model and, moreover, with a specific focus on solving security problems and threats. We believe Barbara IoT will become the leading cyber-secure industrial edge computing platform provider for industrial companies with critical infrastructure." Caixa Capital Risc, CriteriaCaixa's venture capital manager, which is leading this financing round, continues its firm commitment to entrepreneurs committed to innovation, leadership in cutting-edge B2B markets such as Industry 4.0 and cybersecurity, as well as technologies such as edge computing and Artificial Intelligence whose application is essential in critical infrastructures worldwide. READ MORE
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10/05/2022Iberdrola, the only company in the Ibex 35 that offers an 'involvement dividend' at the General Meeting Iberdrola has been committed for years to strengthening dialogue with its more than 600,000 shareholders and to achieving their maximum involvement in the company's most important decisions. For this reason, the Board of Directors, at its meeting today, updated its policy of incentives for participation in the General Shareholders' Meeting and proposed a dividend for involvement in the Meeting, making it the only company in the Ibex 35 that rewards its shareholders for participating in the company's most important event. If this new incentive is approved by the General Shareholders' Meeting on 17 June and a certain quorum is reached, Iberdrola will pay an additional amount to all its shareholders entitled to participate in the Meeting. Both the percentage of the quorum and the amount of this participation dividend will be published in the next few days, together with the announcement of the call to meeting. The Board of Directors has also approved the agenda for the next General Meeting, which includes 20 proposed resolutions, including amendments to the Articles of Association, the approval of the annual accounts, the statement of non-financial information, the application of the 2021 result and two new editions of the optional dividend system "Iberdrola Retribución Flexible", as well as the re-election of several independent directors. Specifically, the Board of Directors has proposed to reformulate the Preamble and article 7 of the By-Laws to consolidate Iberdrola's commitment to its purpose and values and to the generation of the social dividend. Thus, the company renews its adherence to the most demanding standards in terms of environmental protection and climate action, social commitment, and corporate governance (known in English as the ESG criteria). This new initiative, in line with the company's sustainable development strategy and social dividend, consolidates Iberdrola at the forefront of international best practices in governance and sustainability. Furthermore, the re-election of Mr. Anthony L. Gardner, Ms. María Ángeles Alcalá Díaz and Ms. Isabel García Tejerina as independent directors is proposed to the General Shareholders' Meeting. In this way, the company reinforces the high level of independence of the members of its Board of Directors, as well as their diversity in terms of gender, age, origin and experience. It is also proposed to maintain the number of members at 14. New share buy-back programme The Board of Directors has also agreed, at its meeting today, to carry out a new share buyback programme with the aim of reducing the share capital, subject to the agreement of the General Meeting of Shareholders. The aim is to meet the group's commitment to keep the number of outstanding shares, on which earnings per share are calculated, stable at around 6.24 billion. To this end, Iberdrola will redeem a maximum of 197,563,000 of its own shares, representing 3.069% of the company's current share capital, including those acquired under the buyback programme. The General Meeting of Shareholders, a sustainable event Iberdrola continues to be committed to its leadership in the sustainability of all its processes, including corporate events, as provided for in its Sustainable Management Policy. Its General Shareholders' Meeting would be certified as a sustainable event for the seventh consecutive year. This recognition is granted by AENOR, based on compliance with the requirements of the ISO 20121 standard for sustainable event management, and by the Basque Government's public company IHOBE, through its "Erronka Garbia" seal. These certifications certify that all the Board's processes - from planning to after the event - follow sustainable criteria in order to ensure accessibility, minimise environmental impact, help the local community and vulnerable groups and raise awareness of sustainability. Iberdrola was the first Ibex 35 company to obtain this certification in 2016 and to renew it in 2019. In 2020, the company was a pioneer in certifying the sustainable management of both the Board and the results presentations and Capital Markets Day. READ MORE
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10/05/2022Iberdrola sends a new shipment of generators, tools and electrical material to Ukraine Iberdrola is helping Ukraine. The company has delivered electrical material to the country invaded by Russia that it had requested through European organisations. Basically, these are generators and electrical components valued at 53,000 euros. In mid-March, Iberdrola set out to meet the request for electrical components made by Ukraine through Eurolectric and Aelec, the European and national organisations that encompass electricity companies. It had sent them a list of humanitarian needs for electrical equipment. The request had been made by the Ukrainians through the international organisation Energy Community, of which the country is a member, and which collaborates with the European Commission to obtain material for its electrical system. This list included the needs detected by the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy and the sectors for which the order would be destined. From i-DE, Iberdrola's subsidiary in charge of electricity distribution, they contacted their usual logistics operator to make an economic and delivery estimate for some of the materials. We finally decided to purchase the materials: two electric generators, one of 68KW and the other of 40KW; tools and pressure spanners; 25 LED spotlights; 200 metal cutting discs; 200 units of glass insulators; 2,000 metres of cable and 1,000 litres of motor oil. In total, the cost of the material amounts to 53,000 euros, which has finally been paid by the Iberdrola Foundation. The electricity company's logistics department was responsible for documenting the donation and coordinating the delivery. The final recipients of our aid were the company DTEK, the country's electricity distributor to its various businesses (networks, coal and generation). The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy itself has also received the motor oil. Much of the selected material was ordered by DTEK. It is one of the most important distributors in Ukraine and is a member of EDSO, the association of European distributors, of which i-DE is also a member. In addition, DTEK had made an appeal for assistance directly to EDSO, of which Iberdrola was aware and was receptive to help. Once all the material was prepared and received by Iberdrola's logistics operator at the beginning of April, all the necessary documentary procedures were carried out through the Energy Community to deliver the goods. This entire operation was carried out in coordination with the Cenem (National Emergency Centre of the Directorate General for Civil Protection and Emergencies). Basically, it was a matter of managing the collection of the material from the warehouse located in the Madrid town of Meco where Iberdrola had left the material. The company asked the Energy Community to take charge of the collection and transport of the material deposited in Meco to wherever they considered necessary to ensure its arrival at the indicated destination. Cenem was responsible for paying the 7,800 euros for transport, and for ensuring that the packaging of the material was correct. It also provided instructions on how to prepare and identify it properly. The material was picked up from Amara's warehouse on 25 April and from there it was transported to Poland. On 2 May, Energy Community informed Iberdrola that they had oral confirmation that the shipment had arrived in Kovel, Ukraine. Eight tonnes of humanitarian supplies To date, Iberdrola has sent to Ukraine more than eight tonnes of humanitarian material donated by its employees through its corporate volunteer network in Spain. Among the basic necessities provided are first aid, orthopaedic, hygiene and sanitary products, as well as shelter, food, warm clothing, blankets and quilts. This initiative has been developed within the Volunteers for Ukraine programme launched by the company since the beginning of this crisis. The company is also raising funds, doubling the amounts donated by its employees. It has been delivered to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to provide shelter, immediate food and emergency care to the thousands of people who are leaving Ukraine and gathering at the borders. The Iberdrola Foundation donated one million euros to UNHCR and the Red Cross to support their work. The company will also support Ukrainian refugees arriving in Spain through its Iberdrola Volunteering for Refugees initiative. Since 2015, this initiative has already helped more than a thousand refugees from other armed conflicts, such as Syria, Palestine, Afghanistan and Mali. In addition, Iberdrola sent a first batch of 20 generators to Ukraine to maintain the operation of special services such as hospitals, shelters or water treatment plants. Iberdrola's volunteering programme has been the only Spanish company to be recognised as a pioneering practice by the United Nations in its 'Transforming Lives and Communities' report, published in September 2021. This programme has already been awarded by IMPACT2030 with the 2018 Innovation Award in recognition of its innovative approaches to advancing the SDGs through its human capital. READ MORE
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09/05/2022Iberdrola builds 1,800 new MW of renewable energy in the US Iberdrola continues to make progress in its commitment to the development of renewable energies in the United States . At the end of the first quarter, the company had installed renewable capacity of more than 8,360 MW, 4.5% more than in the same period of the previous year. Through AVANGRID, its subsidiary in the country, the group currently has renewable projects under construction with a combined capacity of 1,800 MW. By the end of this year, the company expects 600 MW of new onshore wind and solar power facilities to come on stream. These include the 200 MW Golden Hills wind farm, which the company is building in Oregon and is currently starting up. Work on the 105 MW Midland wind farm in Illinois is also progressing as expected. In the next three months, the 194 MW Lund Hill PV plant in Washington State and the 210 MW Montague PV plant in Oregon, which are already at an advanced stage of assembly, will enter commercial operation. Also in Oregon, the company is installing the Bakeoven (269 MW) and Daybreak (189 MW) solar plants, which will be completed in the second half of this year. Offshore leader In addition to being one of the three largest wind and solar energy companies in the United States, Iberdrola is a leader in offshore wind energy, with a portfolio of almost 5,000 MW. Of particular note is the Vineyard Wind 1 project, which the company is developing off the coast of Massachusetts. With 800 MW of installed capacity and an investment of 2,500 million euros, this is the first commercial-scale wind farm in the United States and one of Iberdrola's largest in the world. Its construction, which officially began in November 2021 , continues to progress. So far this year, onshore drilling has been completed for the reception of the export cable and progress has been made in the construction of the onshore substation. In addition to the United States, the Iberdrola group has a portfolio of offshore projects in the United Kingdom, Poland, Sweden, Ireland, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines and Brazil, which could increase in the coming years. Potential investments associated with this portfolio of projects, many of which could mature beyond 2030, could be estimated at 90 billion euros. Thanks to the company's commitment to renewable energies, AVANGRID's CO2 emissions intensity at the end of the last financial year was already 6.5 times lower than the average for US utilities. READ MORE
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06/05/2022Iberdrola inicia hoy una campaña sobre las ventajas de la tarifa libre del mercado respecto de la regulada por el Gobierno Iberdrola ha iniciado hoy una campaña en la que anima a los consumidores a suscribir contratos de suministro eléctrico a través de contratos libres por ser más baratos que la tarifa regulada por el Gobierno. Veinte millones de hogares en España han visto cómo su recibo de la luz es igual o menor que hace un año. Son los de aquellos ciudadanos que tienen tarifa libre. Sin embargo, los contratos de la tarifa regulada por el Gobierno tienen como referencia los vaivenes diarios de los mercados de la energía y resultan insoportables para los ciudadanos adscritos a esta tarifa. Por tal motivo, y como continuación a su anterior campaña “Plan Estable” del pasado mes de marzo, esta campaña informativa y publicitaria insistirá en las ventajas de una contratación frente a la otra. Ahorro, estabilidad y seguridad son las propuestas por las que apuesta la compañía, frente a los contratos sometidos a las incertidumbres y a la coyuntura de un mercado regulado e inestable. España es el único país de Europa cuya tarifa regulada cambia cada hora, lo que genera a los clientes más dudas e incertidumbre. Iberdrola, con más de un siglo de experiencia y más de cien millones de clientes en diferentes países del mundo, líder en energías renovables y descarbonización del planeta, quiere así demostrar a los ciudadanos que un más estable y menor precio es posible. READ MORE
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05/05/2022Iberdrola will contribute to making Volkswagen's electric vehicle value chain sustainable Iberdrola and Volkswagen have presented in Sagunt (Valencia) a strategic collaboration agreement that will contribute to making the entire electric vehicle value chain sustainable in the automaker's future gigafactory. The Chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, thanked the CEO of Volkswagen, Herbert Diess, for the possibility of participating from the outset in the battery factory project that the automobile company is going to develop in Sagunt, as this is a strategic project for Iberdrola because "it is part of our commitment to the decarbonisation of the industry's production processes. This is the great value that we bring to this plant, through the generation of competitive renewable energy, part of it for self-consumption; recharging solutions for the mobility of the factory itself; improved energy efficiency and electrification of processes through the use of heat pumps or green hydrogen". The chairman of Iberdrola stressed that this agreement will involve 500 million euros in investments in renewable energies to supply the energy demand required by the gigafactory, which will prevent the emission of 200,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere each year. Galán also highlighted the importance of this future facility in terms of accelerating the electrification of mobility, which currently generates 30% of Spain's greenhouse gas emissions. During the meeting with Herbert Diess, Ignacio Galán reaffirmed the need to strengthen the weight of Spanish industry through alliances such as the one between the two companies, which allows the potential of all agents to be harnessed to drive the energy transition. In order to succeed in the transformation of the productive fabric, the chairman of Iberdrola indicated that stability, predictability and respect for the law are essential in order to obtain the necessary financing to carry it out. Ignacio Galán pointed out the importance of the Valencia region for Iberdrola, where more than 120 years ago "we began to generate clean energy in the Júcar river, at the Salto del Molinar, and where we have the largest energy storage plant in Europe, Cortes-La Muela". READ MORE
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05/05/2022ICO Next Tech Fund, Iberdrola and Nortia Capital team up with Seaya to launch Andromeda, the first major technology fund to accelerate energy transition and sustainability The First Vice-President and Minister for Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, Nadia Calviño, announced today that the Secretary of State for Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence together with the ICO, through Fond-ICO Next Tech, Iberdrola, through its PERSEO start-up programme , and Nortia Capital are joining forces with Seaya Ventures to launch Andromeda, Spain's first major technology fund to accelerate the energy transition and sustainability. The fund, which has a size of €300 million, will invest in European technology scale-ups related to sustainability, energy transition, electrification of the economy, and other areas such as sustainable agriculture and the circular economy. It is the first major technology venture capital fund to have concrete sustainability objectives in line with Article 9 of the EU Regulation, with clear and measurable environmental, sustainability and governance (ESG) criteria. Public participation in Andromeda is articulated through the Next Tech Fund , with an investment of up to €100 million. The First Vice-President pointed out that with this "there are now two operations of the Next Tech Fund in less than six months, consolidating this initiative as the great lever for the growth of technology scale-ups with a transformative base in the country". With it, a public investment of €170 million has already been made. This new operation is part of the Government's Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, which promotes public-private collaboration in innovative digital projects in high-impact technologies and the development of scale-ups that generate quality employment. The president of the ICO Group, José Carlos García de Quevedo, stressed that "Fond-ICO Next Tech's investment in the Andromeda fund will boost the development of projects that contribute to stimulating the double transition, digital and green, of the production network to consolidate recovery and sustainable growth". With its participation in Andromeda, Iberdrola is taking a step further towards entrepreneurship and technological leadership through its PERSEO start-up programme, which aims to facilitate the group's access to the technologies of the future and foster collaboration and development of a global ecosystem of technological and innovative companies in the electricity sector. "This project will encourage the technological leaders of the future to flourish in Spain, consolidating our position at the forefront of the most sustainable technologies. Andromeda is a clear example of the activity that we have been carrying out for more than 15 years through Perseo to support the best entrepreneurs and start-ups that accelerate the transition towards a more sustainable energy model", said Ignacio Galán, Chairman of Iberdrola. Union of leadership Seaya Ventures is one of Europe's leading venture capital firms, with stakes in Cabify, Glovo and Wallbox. Seaya has an extensive track record investing in technology companies in the energy, circular economy and agritech sectors. This fund will be integrated into its venture capital platform to further support the leaders of the future in these sectors. The founder of Seaya, Beatriz González, said of this alliance: "We are very proud and grateful to be able to count on the support of Nortia, Iberdrola and Next Tech in this fund, which will be a pioneer in southern Europe. Innovation and technology are the keys to achieving more sustainable development. Seaya Andromeda wants to support the founders who want to lead this commitment to the future". The CEO of Nortia Capital, Ana Forner, said that "Nortia Capital is firmly committed to entrepreneurship and sustainability. Manuel Lao's intention is to invest in projects that meet these requirements. Being part of a pioneering project like Andromeda allows us to support Spanish companies to be at the forefront of technology and sustainability". Nortia Capital, Manuel Lao's investment holding company, continues its investment activity in the field of sustainability, following the investments made in recent months in renewable energy, infrastructure, Foodtech, hotels, agriculture and real estate, among others. It is also a leading investor in Merlin Properties and Sacyr. With this new investment, Nortia Capital continues to strengthen its commitment to entrepreneurship and to achieving sustainable economic development with an impact on society. Iberdrola: 15 years of entrepreneurship through Perseo Since its creation, PERSEO has invested almost 100 million euros in start-ups that develop innovative technologies and business models, focusing on those that improve the sustainability of the energy sector through greater electrification and decarbonisation of the economy . The programme has focused its activities on the analysis of business opportunities and technological collaboration with start-ups and emerging companies around the world, analysing 300 companies each year and creating an ecosystem of almost 7,500 entrepreneurial companies from more than 35 countries. In addition to investment, through PERSEO, Iberdrola carries out more than 25 real tests of technologies per year, which serve as the first step in establishing a commercial relationship with the start-ups. In addition, in the last two years the group has launched more than fifteen challenges in which around 1,000 start-ups have participated. READ MORE
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04/05/2022The electric vehicle value chain in Spain will be sustainable thanks to Iberdrola The Iberdrola Group will play an important role in the Future: Fast Forward consortium, led by SEAT and the Volkswagen Group, which today presented its project to the PERTE for the Connected Electric Vehicle (CEV), the most important call for applications for these grants from the European Next Generation funds for economic recovery and transformation. Iberdrola's participation will make it possible to promote sustainability throughout the electric vehicle manufacturing process, significantly reducing CO2 emissions in its production processes. The company's contribution will focus on three areas: • The decarbonisation of the SEAT factories in Martorell and Volkswagen in Pamplona, electrifying their industrial processes to make them more competitive and avoid the emission of greenhouse gases, with clean and more efficient technologies. • Development of photovoltaic self-consumption projects, which will make it possible to use these renewable resources to supply clean energy to electric vehicle manufacturing plants. • Development of R&D&I projects to develop innovative smart charging solutions and to test uses for the second life batteries of these vehicles. This initiative, which involves a total of 62 companies, covers the entire electric vehicle value chain, which will be sustainable thanks to Iberdrola's contribution. Iberdrola is committed to the electrification of transport as part of its strategy of transition towards a decarbonised economy, as a key lever for reducing emissions. The group has a sustainable mobility plan, with an investment of 150 million euros, which provides for the installation of nearly 150,000 high-efficiency charging points, both in homes and businesses, as well as on urban roads, in cities and on major highways. Iberdrola is aware of the need for coordinated and effective action with the main players involved to promote electromobility in Spain. In this regard, the company has already completed more than 50 infrastructure deployment agreements with administrations, institutions, companies, service stations, dealers and electric vehicle manufacturers. The company's public charging network for electric vehicles now has 2,500 charging points. Thus, the company's chargers have reached 900 locations in Spain, after incorporating more than a hundred new locations with access to charging points in the first quarter of the year. Of the total network installed by Iberdrola, 45% corresponds to fast or ultra-fast charging points. In fact, Iberdrola is the electricity company with the most chargers of this type, which currently represent 20% of the total fast public charging network in Spain. The company was the first company in Spain to sign up to The Climate Group's EV100 initiative, with the aim of accelerating the transition to electric mobility , committing to electrify its entire fleet of vehicles and to facilitate charging for the staff of its businesses in Spain and the United Kingdom by 2030. READ MORE
