The CEO of Repsol, Josu Jon Imaz, has expressed the opinion that the automotive sector in Spain is “threatened by a series of absolutely incorrect energy transition measures”, such as, in his opinion, the “decided commitment to only one form of mobility”, in reference to the electrification of vehicles.
“We are creating mobility for the rich, mobility that a large part of the population cannot afford. We have an increasingly older vehicle fleet. The Spanish vehicle fleet was on average eight years old in 2008, today it is fourteen,” he said. Imaz highlighted in his speech at the FAES 2023 Campus conference.
Thus, Imaz has emphasized that Spain should encourage the renewal of the vehicle fleet given that, in his opinion, this would reduce polluting emissions by around 90%. “This would reactivate the Spanish automobile industry, which is very specialized in mid-range and low-end cars,” he added.
Along these lines, he has considered that the ban on the manufacture of combustion engines in the EU from 2035 “generates uncertainty” both in society and in manufacturers and has advocated for more favorable taxation in the European Union for fuels. . synthetics.
The CEO of Iberdrola Spain, Mario Ruiz-Tagle, also participated in the discussion table at the FAES conference this Thursday, and refuted some of the arguments put forward by the Repsol manager. In that sense, he has considered that transportation in general is one of the sectors with the greatest possibility of accessing decarbonization and has invited Imaz to “trust” in its electrification process.
“I invite you to trust (appealing to Imaz). For that you have to talk, for example, with taxi drivers. Today, an electric vehicle costs around 1,000 euros less per fuel refueling. And that is the reality “he said highlighted. However, Ruiz-Tagle has recognized that the production model of the automotive sector “is going to undergo a change”, but not only in Europe, given that “the world is moving towards electric cars.”
