Commit to a stable Government that generates broad consensus in the face of the challenge of positioning itself in European industrial technological development

BILBAO, 30 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The president of Petronor and director of Repsol, Emiliano López Atxurra, has assured that the CEO of the energy company, Josu Jon Imaz, has "never" said that they will leave Spain, but he does consider that their investments "have to be in 'stand by'" if there is no "stable and predictable" regulatory framework.

After rejecting tax "discrimination" and the penalization of oil

In this way, he referred to Imaz's statements last Thursday in which he warned that, if the tax on energy companies is extended, it could jeopardize his investments in the Spanish State.

In an interview with Radio Euskadi, collected by Europa Press, Atxurra said that Josu Jon Imaz's words are those of the company's Board of Directors. "It is a communication that has a double signal. On the one hand, that of our business commitment in Spain, that is, it has never been said that it is going to leave Spain. Secondly, our warning that, if there is no stable and predictable regulatory framework, appropriate to other regulatory frameworks in our European environment, investments have to be on stand-by", he added.

Asked if some of those investments he referred to have to do with Euskadi, he pointed out that, at the moment, the investments that have been approved and related to synthetic fuel and hydrogen, both the 2.5 megawatts and the 10 megawatt one, are consolidated and are, at this moment, in the process of their materialization.

"In addition, the synthetic fuel is a Demo plant, which will demonstrate to us its reliability, its safety and its feasibility in market terms. That, logically, leads to that Demo plant, later having a translation, which is an industrial plant "This industrial plant, logically, will be on 'stand by' because we will have to implement an industrial investment in a regulatory environment that is not only friendly, but also predictable," he stressed.

After specifying that he does not like to talk about "friendly regulatory environments", but rather "predictable and appropriate" to the environment of the economic, industrial and political space, "which is Europe", Emiliano López Atxurra said that "what is not consolidated is the investment of the 100 megawatts, which has to do with the hydrogen plant directly associated with the refinery's activity." "That is what would be in a stand-by situation at the moment," he remarked.

In his opinion, "taxes are an important asset for the well-being of citizens" and, therefore, "necessary", but he has pointed out that "taxes and collection also require maximization in public management, and in the effectiveness and efficiency of public services".

In this sense, he explained that Petronor alone, between 2019 and 2022, has paid 3,000 million euros in taxes to the Foral Treasury of Bizkaia, and 2,000 to the Tax Agency, of the General Administration of the State.

According to him, what they propose, from a tax point of view, is "non-discrimination." "And that means that you, due to a specific situation, cannot propose an exceptional tax system outside the conventional regulatory framework for the approval of taxes," she stated.

Likewise, he considers that "the tax approach", if applicable, "focusing only on oil

"We must not forget that the energy approach is articulated around the following axes: natural resources, which are in the free global market; technology, which requires a lot of innovation and a lot of investment; and industrial processes, which also require a lot of investment and materialization of the activity. industrial," he recalled.

López Atxurra explained that the three axes "are subject, not as benefits fallen from the sky, but regulated by the global market", and has considered that "you cannot penalize, because you are demonizing oil

"The oil

The president of Petronor and director of Repsol does not believe "that oil penalty is relevant

Along these lines, he has defended that there be an "adaptation to changes because they are survival, but it must be done with rigor and, above all, without prejudice." "It is our element of concern, because we are acting with prejudices," he maintained.

Asked if he agrees with the president of the CEOE, Antonio Garamendi, who described as "populist" the measures that the PSOE and Sumar intend to implement, he replied that he does not dare to assure "that they are populist", because he likes "just enough" to use the populist concept.

"What I say after reading that agreement is that an approach is made that is excessively linked to 'we will promote'. The same thing that was said in the climate change law. If the impulse is not translated into a technological-industrial strategy, that is a materialization in the void of what you want to do," he warned.

For this reason, he has stressed that, "any project that does not have materiality in an industrial technological strategy, and that is manifested in a regulatory field of incentives and adaptation, does not make sense."

"The words are carried by the wind and we have thousands and thousands of powerpoints regarding this type of issues. The industrial strategy is missing, because energy issues are not ideological issues in a demagogic sense, but rather issues of technological, industrial materiality and a balance stability of the different functions that nature gives us," he clarified.

As an example, he said that "the natural balance, in terms of water, in terms of food security, is also linked to energy security and, therefore, the technological incentive is clear." For this reason, he advocates that "less talk be made and greater consensus be reached about the opportunity that Spain has in technological-industrial matters in the energy transition." "It's the real challenge," she said.

On the political scene, he highlighted that companies need "a stable framework" because, "if there is no stability, there is no future, no investments or strategy." "I am fundamentally concerned that we need stability and a broad consensus, because we are playing in the period 24-29, after the elections to the European Parliament, our position in European industrial technological development and our position in the community institutions," he said. warned.

For this reason, he has emphasized that "stability is necessary, and that stability means broad consensus." Asked if this can be given by Pedro Sánchez, he responded that, "at the moment, it has to be given by anyone who is capable of generating a broad consensus."