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Ignacio Galán was interviewed on the radio programme "Más de uno", hosted on the Onda Cero channel by Carlos Alsina, one of Spain's leading opinion leaders, on the occasion of the launch of the Q-Zero alliance. 

The Chairman of the Iberdrola group encouraged "joining forces between those who produce, those who consume and those who manage" to respond to "the global clamour for decarbonisation and the reduction of emissions and polluting materials on the planet". 

The latest major international events, such as the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos or the Climate Summit in Dubai, have made it clear that there is a broad political consensus to move towards electrification and reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. "This is not a war against each other. It is an alliance with each other to achieve the goals of decarbonisation", Galán insisted. "Together we can achieve it. Separately, it will be much more difficult", he assured.

This process will bring benefits for citizens in three main areas, according to Ignacio Galán. On the one hand, it will produce more stable prices by avoiding volatility, as "indigenous renewable production will reduce dependence on imports". 

Secondly, this will generate "new industries and more quality jobs". "Today we already have more than 36 million jobs linked to the energy transition," said Galán.

Finally, decarbonisation will have a positive impact on people's health because "it will lead to much less harmful air and environmental quality".

"Energy is not electricity"

Asked about the taxation of energy companies as a result of the crisis, the chairman of the Iberdrola Group clarified that "energy is not electricity", as demonstrated by the fact that, today, "80% of the energy we consume is not electricity. It is energy produced with gas, coal or oil" and he recalled that the crisis "was not electrical, it was energy because the origin was called gas".

He regretted that "in this totum revolutum" the electricity companies have been affected "we were the solution and not the problem. If we want less volatility, more renewables and more storage", he said.

"I defend, have defended and will defend the polluter pays principle. And those who do not pollute and do things well must be rewarded or recognised. You can't lump everyone together", he concluded.

Galán also gave his opinion on the debate as to whether we are acting quickly enough in the face of climate change. "Without a doubt, we are moving at a very slow pace. We have already almost reached the temperature levels we expected for 2050", said Galán who, nevertheless, was optimistic: "We have time if we triple renewables by 2030 and reduce the consumption of fossil fuels".

In this sense, he was critical of those who describe as green what is not: "I have experienced the denialists in the first stage, who were disproved by an immense scientific base. Then came the retardationists, who said we are going to do it, but more slowly, and now green washing is emerging, they say but don't do".