Spain’s oil giant Repsol turns to renewables

Repsol President Antonio Brufau has ratified the company’s commitment to fighting climate change, while acknowledging the high levels of competitiveness achieved by the renewable energy technologies. In Repsol’s view, however, gas is still considered one of the main pillars of the energy transition, said to ensure a safer power supply than intermittent renewables.

May 17, 2018 Emiliano Bellini

Repsol headquarters in Madrid, Spain.

Image: Luis García/Wikimedia Commons

Spain-based oil provider, Repsol has joined the club of multinational oil groups that have recently refocused their strategies towards renewable energies, in an attempt to diversify business. It includes, among others, Shell, Total, Eni, Norway’s Statoil (which was renamed into Equinor to stress its new commitment to renewables), Hungary’s Mol, Oman’s PDO, and Jamaica’s PJC.

During the general meeting of shareholders, Repsol president Antonio Brufau said that the company will now commit to fighting climate change, while adding that it is ready to face all the challenges of Spain’s energy transition. “The group is analyzing alternatives to fight the increase in global temperature, betting on an effective strategy with the lowest possible cost for citizens,” Repsol said in its statement.

Renewable energies, on the other hand, are acknowledged as highly competitive, but they will still need the support of gas power production, due to their intermittent nature, the company stressed. “It is precisely there where gas is positioned as the best option of firm power to combat the intermittency of the system in the face of the increase of renewable energies,” Repsol said. Around 63% of Repsol’s electricity production comes from gas power plants.

Prior to this new announcement, Repsol had already developed activities in the renewable energy sector, especially in wind, by partaking in two offshore wind power pilot projects: the Principle Power, Inc. (PPI) project in Portugal, which was launched in 2011; and the WindFloat Atlantic (WFA) Project, which is being developed in partnership with EDP Renewables, Mitsubishi Corp., Chiyoda Corp., and Engie, and of which the Spanish oil company owns a 19% stake.

Furthermore, it is also active in pilot projects for biofuels and electromobility.

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