The Repsol Foundation, CECAM, and the Chambers of Commerce analyze the energy transition of companies in Castilla-La Mancha

The second day of the conferences on “The challenge of the energy transition in companies in Castilla-La Mancha” organized by the Repsol Foundation, the Regional Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Castilla La Mancha CECAM – CEOE, the Council of Official Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Services of Castilla-La Mancha highlighted the progress of companies in Castilla-La Mancha in terms of sustainability, the circular economy, renewable generation, the development of hydrogen, and the role that digitalization is playing in the decarbonization process.

The second and last session was opened by the director of the National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Center (CNH2), Emilio Nieto, who spoke on “The role of hydrogen in the current context of the European REPowerEU plan.” Nieto highlighted how Spain is in a prime situation to undertake hydrogen projects, especially taking advantage of the most industrialized areas. The National Hydrogen Center leads the Hydrogen Cluster of Castilla-La Mancha, where the Repsol Industrial Complex in Puertollano is located, among other companies in the region. This Center is part of the national consortium Shyne, led by Repsol.

An example of these strategic partnerships is the first round table that focused on discussing and analyzing the opportunities for hydrogen development that Castilla-La Mancha is promoting, with the support of different projects and collaborations in the public and private sectors. The participants were the executive managing director of Energy Transition of the Ministry for Sustainable Development of Castilla-La Mancha, Manuel Guirao; the dean of the Faculty of Chemical Sciences and Technology of the University of Castilla-La Mancha, Manuel Rodrigo; the executive managing director of the Industrial Technology Center of Castilla la Mancha (ITECAM), Jorge Parra; the senior scientist of Hydrogen Technologies at the Repsol Technology Lab, María Dolores Hernández, and the Business Developer-Large Industries at Air Liquide, Gonzalo Navarro.

This was followed by the round table on “Energy efficiency, digitalization, and other springboards for the ecological transition,” which presented the initiatives and business projects that are being carried out in the region using digitalization strategies, energy efficiency processes and waste management, which are contributing to reduce the carbon footprint. Those who took part include the head of Digital Program and IT&Digital Architecture at Repsol, José Sánchez-Quintanar; the head of Energy at Teknia Group, Antonio J. Orpez; the director of Sales and Distribution at Flexofibers, Ricardo Ayala, and the director of the Foreign Trade and Investment Institute of Castilla-La Mancha, Luis Noé Sánchez.

The closing of the conference was given by the director of the Puertollano Industrial Complex, Arsenio Salvador, and the mayor of Puertollano, Adolfo Muñiz. The mayor of the city thanked the Repsol Foundation for hosting the event in Puertollano, which highlights the industrial city’s good conditions to advance in the energy transition. Puertollano, said Muñiz, “is a resilient city, which has always been self-made. Now we are on that path, and we will increase our pace soon with the opening of the Regional Agency of R&D&I of Castilla-La Mancha, which will be located in this city.” He also noted the intention of the municipal administration to “continue building the future together, and I am glad that Repsol is one of the partners for that future.”

For his part, Arsenio Salvador highlighted how Castilla-La Mancha has a robust business network, prepared to face the challenge of the energy transition. A challenge, he said, “shared by any productive sector.” The director of the Repsol Industrial Complex in Puertollano assured that “the energy and ecological transition must be seen as an opportunity to create synergies and collaborations between companies and business opportunities. These conferences have shown that this collaboration must come from three perspectives—the business and industrial strength of our territory, its research and innovation capacity, and the support and agility of public institutions.”

CECAM-CEOE highlighted the need for these conferences to shed light on difficult issues for small and medium-sized enterprises such as sustainability or the circular economy. The Confederation of Chambers of Commerce of Castilla-La Mancha stressed the need to give time and financial support to companies, so that they are able to achieve the competitiveness required by the necessary energy transition.

This conference is part of the activities promoted by Open Room, the Repsol Foundation’s digital community on energy transition, which aims to promote knowledge and debate on a fair and inclusive energy transition. This community is an open digital space for knowledge and dissemination. It has a permanent forum where its members can access questions and answers about the challenges and opportunities of the energy transition from prestigious experts and institutions from and all spheres: public, private, academic, and social.

About the Repsol Foundation

The Repsol Foundation implements projects focused on energy transition and society to help create a more sustainable future. The Repsol Foundation is committed to innovation, knowledge, and people, carrying out its strategy in four lines of action:

• Investing in companies working for a sustainable and inclusive energy transition, generating a triple positive impact: environmental, social, and economic.
• A business accelerator to support innovative technology-based solutions in energy and mobility.
• Disseminating knowledge about the energy transition through the Repsol Foundation’s digital platform Open Room, a network of Energy Transition Education and Research Program at prestigious universities, and a digital educational program to raise awareness among young people about the challenges of the future of energy.
• Promoting social and volunteering projects related to the energy transition and climate change, which drive social development.