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Iberdrola Chairman, Ignacio Galán, has reaffirmed the company’s commitment to fighting climate change, sustainable development and the environment at a meeting in Madrid with Spain’s Minister for Energy, Tourism and Digital Agenda, Álvaro Nadal, and the heads of the regional governments of Castile-Leon, Juan Vicente Herrera, and Asturias, Javier Fernández.  

In this regard, Galán defended the consistency of Iberdrola’s decision of phasing out all of its coal-fired power producing capacity worldwide, an energy source which represents just 1.8% of the group’s total installed capacity of 48,062 megawatts (MW), with the strategic decision made by its governing board to fight against climate change.

On 10th November, the company filed a permit application with the Ministry of Energy, Tourism and Digital Strategy to close the coal-fired power plants in Lada (Asturias) and Velilla (Palencia). With a combined capacity of 874 MW, both assets are located in Spain and in 2016 accounted for less than 1% of the country’s total power output.

Since 2001, the company has decommissioned nearly 7,500 MW of thermal power capacity (see chart below) across the globe. In 2013 and 2016, Cockenzie and Longannet, two large power plants in the United Kingdom with a combined capacity of 3,600 MW, were closed. Also, between 2001 and 2012 over 3,200 MW of fuel-oil-fired plants were phased out in Spain. Meanwhile, it has commissioned renewables and environmentally friendly assets amounting to 34,000 MW.

Closure of the two plants will affect neither security of supply nor energy prices (since their combined production represents less than 1% of Spain’s total) nor the company’s strong long-term commitment to job stability since 100% of the staff will be relocated. Instead the decision will produce environmental benefits for densely populated urban areas.

During the meeting, Ignacio Galán shared some figures to highlight the group’s internationally recognised environmental commitment:

Furthermore, Ignacio Galán reiterated that Iberdrola, together with other leading European Energy companies, recently called upon the European Commission and Parliament to embrace higher and more ambitious binding renewable energy targets for 2030 by raising the share of renewables in the final energy demand on the continent from the current target of 27% to 35%.

 Also, Ignacio Galán stated that Iberdrola is fully aligned with the environmental targets set by the Paris Agreement, having played an active role at the climate summits in Paris (COP21), Marrakech (COP22) and Bonn (COP23) while at the same time having incorporated to its business strategy and sustainability policy the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) as defined by the UN for the 2015-2030 period.

The company has become a benchmark in global sustainability indices - DJSI, Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World, Carbon Disclosure Project- and is a global leader in ethical finance after placing €6.7 billion in nine green bond issuances and receiving a €500 million green loan.

Iberdrola pioneered the integration of combatting global warming as a priority into its corporate governance system. In 2009 it approved its Policy against Climate Change undertaking, among other measures, to support an ambitious global emissions reduction target; to promote the development of efficient technologies to bring down greenhouse-gas emissions; to advocate for an integrated and fair global emissions market while fostering the efficient and responsible use of energy involving all company stakeholders. This commitment has been incorporated to the company’s by-laws as part of the social dividend as well as to the Mission, Vision and Values of Iberdrola Group.

THERMAL POWER PLANTS CLOSED BY IBERDROLA SINCE 2001