Repsol asks the next Government to separate energy and climate policies in different Ministries

2023-09-14 16:01:27

The CEO of Repsol, Joshua Jon Imazhas asked the next Government this Thursday to separate energy and climate in different Ministries so that energy “is not subject to climate policies”, just as the transportation or agriculture, has argued. The one who was president of Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) between 2004 and 2008 he made these statements during his speech at a round table on energy transition organized by the Faes Foundationdirected by José María Aznar, in which he has participated together with his counterparts at Endesa and Iberdrola Spain, José Bogas and Mario Ruiz-Tagle, respectively. Among those present, in addition to the former president of the Government, was the deputy secretary of economy of the Popular Party, Juan Bravo.

In a kind of letter to the Three Wise Men with his demands to the next executive that is formed after the results of the elections of July 23, Imaz has demanded “to separate this conjunction pernicious between energy and climate” and opt for the union between industry and energy accompanied by a “cross-cutting” climate policy across the entire Government so that decarbonization “is part of all public policies.” “I would like energy not to be subject to climate policies (…) We need climate policies aimed at industrial competitivenessnot by Endesa, Repsol or Iberdrola but by the youths who want a future with professional development and stable employment,” defended Imaz.

The Union of energy and environment under the same institutional umbrella was the work of the current acting president, Pedro Sanchez. When she arrived at La Moncloa, in June 2018, she created that portfolio under the leadership of the current third vice president and minister for the Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, to accelerate the decarbonization of the country, and this remained the case after the creation of the so-called coalition government between PSOE and Unidas Podemos. In the absence of knowing what happens at the investiture of Alberto Núñez-Feijoo, if the current Government is reissued with an alliance between PSOE and Sumar It seems difficult for these functions to be divided.

In the Governments of José María Aznar (PP), José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (PSOE) and Mariano Rajoy (PP) environmental responsibilities were almost always linked, precisely, to departments such as those mentioned by Imaz, such as Public Works or Agriculture, among others. . For its part, Energy has traditionally been related to Industry, portfolio to which has recently been added the Tourism and even the Digital Agenda.

Shock with electric

The separation of energy and climate policies requested by Imaz is part of the oil company’s defense of betting on decarbonize fuels and commit to technological neutrality, Instead of putting on climate glasses and putting all efforts into electrification. The CEO of the oil company advocates promoting the renewal of the automobile park –which has an average age of 14 years–, instead of betting on “mobility for the rich” such as the electric car, to reduce emissions and, at the same time, reactivate the Spanish industry “which is highly specialized in low and mid range cars“.

In this sense, Imaz claims to lower the taxation of biofuels to lower its price, which is currently 30 cents higher than that of diesel, according to the CEO of the oil company. Repsol has 16 gas stations that supply 100% renewable fuels in Spain. “If I did not pay the hydrocarbon tax it would be cheaper. “It’s a fiscal issue,” he denounced the reason why fossil fuel is cheaper than renewable fuel.

But this logic does not convince his counterparts in Endesa and Iberdrola, supporters of betting on the electric car and economic electrification. “It is the process that most quickly reduces emissions,” he insisted. Mario Ruiz-Tagle, who has described transportation as one of the sectors with the most possibilities of accessing decarbonization and has invited Imaz to “trust” the industry’s transformation process. “The non transition has risks. The Ferrol estuary was dead and today it is a garden due to the renewable energies that the powerful shipping industry is developing with labor and infrastructure adapted. Some industries will have to adapt and at the same time new ones will emerge,” defended Ruiz-Tagle. “70% of the technologies that exist today can be electrified and with those that are being developed, more than 90%,” he added. Jose Bogas.