Climate policies and partnerships

Active engagement in the global climate agenda

Events Climate action SDG

In the current situation of energy crisis and climate emergency, the acceleration of the energy transition is presented as the necessary solution to achieve climate and energy security objectives, ensuring the decarbonisation of the economy and generating opportunities in terms of competitiveness, job creation, preservation of the environment and biodiversity as well as improving the health and well-being of society. 

In this regard, Iberdrola supports the most ambitious climate goals established both at the European level, with the Green Deal and the framework of measures to reduce emissions by 55 % by 2030 (known as Fit for 55), and at the international level, with the Paris Agreement. To this end, we are very active in the main forums for debate on climate action at European and global level, and we also work with business and multi-stakeholder coalitions, establishing alliances and participating in the most relevant national, European and international climate campaigns and initiatives. 

Present at COP28

Dubai became the global epicentre of dialogue on climate change with the celebration of COP28 between 30 November and 12 December 2023, under the slogan "Unite.Act.Deliver". Once again this year, as a world leader in the fight against climate change, we wer e protagonists and actively participated in the UN climate conference, showing our commitment to a sustainable energy model that generates opportunities and presenting climate action as the central axis of our sustainable development strategy.

During the s ummit held in the United Arab Emirates last year, we supported the goal of tripling renewable capacity by 2030, highlighted the importance of promoting green job opportunities and showed our commitment to promoting the energy infrastructures that are neces sary to meet the COP28 energy targets. To this end, among other things, we promoted the organisation of high - level forums on renewables and biodiversity within the scope of the event, such as the debate held together with BirdLife International under the title "Positive renewable energy for biodiversity: building alliances to move forward".

Iberdrola's committment to summits

At COP21, 195 countries agreed to limit the global temperature increase to below 2° C by the end of the century and to continue efforts to keep the temperature of the planet below 1.5° C. Last year, at COP28, a positive agreement was reached to boost the energy transition. For the first time, countries set a target of tripling renewable capacity and doubling energy efficiency improvements, as well as calling on the world to promote the deployment of electric charging infr astructure and the use of zero and low - emission vehicles.

More than two decades ago, we placed the fight against climate change at the heart of our strategy. Thus, we are fully aligned with the commitments of the Paris Agreement, committing to a strategy based on:

• renewable energy generation
• the development of smart grids
•  the implementation of innovative technological solutions that contribute to decarbonisation and to a successful energy transition that generates opportunities for the economy and society.

The ambitious climate targets we have set together with the significant investments made and planned to meet these targets, as well as our active involvement in forums, alliances and international organisations advocating the fight against climate change, have enabled us to lead the transition towards climate neutrality in all areas of our activity.

This decade is critical to meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement. That is why we are advancing our global growth with investments of 41 billion euros by 2026 to drive the energy transition, jobs and net zero emissions with full integration of environmental and social factors.

In this way, our clean energy and grid investment strategy will lead us, by 2030, to achieve emissions neutrality in our generation, distribution and own consumption plants (Scopes 1 and 2) and to reach net zero emissions in all our activities by 2040.

Aligned with European objectives

Our support is particularly important in the context of the European Union, which, as the largest economic area committed to climate neutrality and a sustainable growth model, set the 2050 target [PDF] with the launch of the European Green Pact. In 2024, as an update of its climate targets, the European Commission presented a new recommendation to achieve neutrality by 2050: a 90 % net reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990 levels. 

We strongly support the objectives of the European Union and, in this framework, we are part of the European Round Table for Industry (ERT), which brings together the leaders of some of the largest industrial and technology companies, including the Chairman of the Iberdrola Group, who support a climate-neutral Europe by 2050 and the 90 % emissions reduction target, backed by a strong industrial policy.

We are also Chair of the Corporate Leaders Group (CLG)External link, opens in new window. , the largest business coalition at European level, a leader in European climate campaigns and with strong positions on accelerating ambition towards a sustainable economy aligned with the net-zero emissions target, as of 2022. We have previously served as Vice-Chair for two consecutive years.

Other climate agenda activities

New York Climate Week and Climate Ambition Summit 2023 

With our support for initiatives such as Climate Week in New York and the international summits convened by the United Nations, we stress the need to act urgently to keep global warning below 1.5ºC and mitigate the effects of climate change on the planet. This will only be possible by uniting the efforts of all agents in all geographies and sectors to multiply the effectiveness of individual commitments and find new solutions. In this respect, the electricity industry plays a fundamental role. Renewable energies, smart grids and the electrification of energy uses will be the key vectors for the descarbonisation of the economy. And we are working to remain at the forefront of this green transformation. 

The Climate Ambition SummitExternal link, opens in new window.  convened by Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations, was the focus of Climate Week NYC 2023. It highlighted the tangible and ambitious actions, policies and plans of global climate action leaders ("first movers and doers"), one of them Iberdrola. Iberdrola's Climate Transition Plan has been chosen, among a small number of global companies, as an example of business leadership in accelerating the decarbonisation of the global economy. Ignacio Galán, Executive Chairman of Iberdrola, participated in the Summit as a recognised driver of climate ambition. 

The main objective of Iberdrola's Plan is based on achieving carbon neutrality of its generation plants, its electricity distribution activity, and its own consumption (scopes 1 and 2) by 2030 and net zero emissions throughout the value chain by 2040, with a science-bases approach. All of this is backed by a solid investment plan, a consolidated map of alliances and an accelerated action scheme based on a just transition that provides value for both people and nature, and always in line with an ambitious approach to climate action. 

Iberdrola has supported the most significant campaigns launched during New York Climate Week, including the call to world leaders and parties to the Paris Agreement to triple renewable capacity globally to at least 11,000 GW by 2030, one of the main goals of the COP28 Presidency, and We Mean Business's Fossil to Fuel campaign to transform the global energy system towards the complete elimination of fossil fuels and the reduction of emissions by half within this decade. Iberdrola has also been a driver of the UN Global Compact Forward Faster initiative that commits to greater ambition to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. 

The urgent need to accelerate, the end of coal, the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies, climate justice, the goal of tripling renewable capacity by 2030 and, looming over all the talks, the need to reform the multilateral financial architecture and increase climate finance, especially urgent from developing countries, have been key themes at the 2023 Climate Ambition Summit. 

We Mean Business

The international business coalition We Mean BusinessExternal link, opens in new window. , made up of around 7,500 global companies, aims to achieve a net zero emissions economy by 2050 and halve current emissions by the end of the decade.

We have a very active participation in this coalition, the most relevant at a global level, with a special visibility for its contribution in campaigns, declarations, alliances and activities that reflect responsible behaviour in climate policies. This year, within the framework of its 4A's (Ambition, Action, Advocacy, Accountability) campaign, launched during Climate Week in New York, We Mean Business has highlighted IberdrolaExternal link, opens in new window. , along with a small group of companies, as an example of a leading company for its contribution to a sustainable energy model and the mobilisation of climate action.

The coalition has emphasised our role as a transformative agent through our action to contribute to not exceeding the 1.5°C global temperature rise. The coalition particularly values our innovative capacity to create the energy system of the future, our investment in renewables and sustainable energy solutions, our support for a just transition, our network of alliances and our defence of the most ambitious climate objectives in the main multilateral and economic forums.

Other forums and alliances

We have been a member of the United Nations Global Compact since 2002 and have been a founding member of the Spanish Global Compact NetworkExternal link, opens in new window.  since 2004. By joining, we acquired, among others, the commitment to implement its Ten Principles, and to promote the 2030 Agenda by contributing to the achievement of the SDGs and their dissemination. We have been identified as a LEAD company, due to our high levels of commitment to the principles of the Global Compact, and we have led the climate action platform of this organisation since its creation in 2016.

We are also part of the Race to ZeroExternal link, opens in new window. , a global alliance driven by Climate Champions and the United Nations, which brings together businesses, governments and civil society actors committed to achieving a net-zero emissions future by mid-century at the latest.

Among the international initiatives in which we participate, the Alliance of CEO Climate LeadersExternal link, opens in new window.  is a project that forms part of the World Economic Forum Platform. This is a global community of CEOs who support and drive action to achieve the transition to a net-zero emissions economy. The Chairman of Iberdrola, Ignacio Galán, has joined this alliance along with 70 other business leaders from various industrial sectors and regions.

Among the sectoral campaigns, The Climate Group's EV100 plays a very important role, and we were the first Spanish company to join it. This initiative aims to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, so we committed to electrify our entire fleet of vehicles and to facilitate charging for staff in Spain and the UK by 2030.

We have also established strategic partnerships to accelerate the electrification of energy with companies in different fields and with the public sector. These partnerships enhance climate action efforts by integrating resources, technology, skills, knowledge and determination to create a more sustainable economic model. In this regard, we have submitted more than 170 projects to the European Union's Next Generation programme, which could mobilise investments of 30 billion euros and involve small and medium-sized enterprises, institutions, technology partners, start-ups and the entire value chain. These actions —related to green hydrogen, innovative renewables, sustainable mobility, energy storage, smart grids, electrification of heat and recycling of clean technology components— will contribute to economic recovery, with a focus on sustainability, green and affordable energy and jobs.

Moving for Climate NOW

We have actively participated in the different climate summits, among other activities, through the Moving for Climate NOW cycling route and the delivery of the Manifesto against climate change with the main lines of action in the fight against global warming. The aim of Moving for Climate NOW is to raise awareness of the importance of urgently fighting climate change.

During its six editions, the initiative has had nearly 200 participants from more than 70 organisations and has travelled more than 4,500 kilometres, with the aim of raising awareness of the importance of urgently combating climate change.