Ignacio Galán receives the Gold Medal from the Cursos de La Granda

Iberdrola Executive Chairman Ignacio Galán today received the Gold Medal from the Cursos de La Granda (La Granda Courses) in recognition of his professional career. The award was presented by Benigno Pendás, President of Cursos de La Granda and of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences. The distinction is awarded to individuals of outstanding intellectual, institutional or cultural prestige.

The presentation took place during the official opening ceremony of the 48th edition of the Cursos de La Granda in Avilés. The event included a tribute delivered by Fernando Becker, and was attended by a number of institutional representatives.

Through this recognition, the Royal Academy acknowledged Ignacio Galán's career and his contribution to thought, culture and public debate. Iberdrola's executive chairman is one of the world's leading figures in the energy sector, having been an early champion of electrification through clean energy, smart grids and energy storage to strengthen energy autonomy, security and competitiveness.

Since 2001, Ignacio Galán has led the profound transformation of Iberdrola, turning it into Europe's largest electricity company and one of the two largest worldwide by market capitalisation, now valued at more than €140 billion. Today, the company operates in dozens of countries and supplies electricity to 100 million people.

Strong ties with Asturias

During his speech, Galán highlighted the special significance of receiving the award in Asturias, a region with which he has long-standing personal and professional ties.

The Iberdrola executive chairman underlined the principality's historic role as a driver of major transformations in Spain and praised its ability to combine tradition with modernity, entrepreneurship with culture, and a strong identity with an outward-looking point of view.

Galán also noted that Iberdrola has witnessed – and played an active role in – the transformation of Asturias, which has evolved from an economy based on coal into a centre of development driven by electrification and clean energy.

In just five years, Iberdrola has increased its procurement from Asturian suppliers to €1.6 billion while developing pioneering electrification projects that have helped create jobs, stimulate economic activity and generate new opportunities across the region.

During his address, Galán stressed that the world is facing a historic opportunity to drive a new wave of industrialisation based on electrification, strengthening energy autonomy, improving competitiveness and advancing sustainability.

In this context, he pointed out that over the past 25 years Iberdrola has invested almost €40 billion in Spain in clean energy, electricity networks and energy storage, and reaffirmed the company's ambition to consolidate its position as the country's leading industrial investor.

The Iberdrola executive chairman emphasised that seizing this opportunity will require effective energy planning, a supportive regulatory framework and the investment capacity of leading companies.