The Minister of Industry will meet with the sector tomorrow to analyze what savings opportunities there are to reduce costs and consumption.
Inflation is already permeating all sectors of the economy and Minister Reyes Maroto emphasized in an interview after meeting the digital industry at the Ametic forum in Santander that the government has taken many measures to mitigate the price increase, but that it is now it is Europe that has to make decisions that help countries to gradually lower the CPI.
– Inflation remains at record level. What else can the government do?
-The expectation we have is that it has peaked and from now on the trend will be curtailing. We have to see the consequences of the measures taken at European level. I am not saying that we have exhausted the margin we had in Spain, but it is true that we have already activated many of the tools, including the reduction of VAT from 21% to 5%, which represents a lot of resources. The big uncertainty here is how long the war will last and we don’t have that answer. The role that Europe plays is very important because we are all looking at Europe now because the margin that the countries have is getting smaller and smaller.
–Energy accounts for 50% of costs for many industries, how can you support this affected sector?
–Monday (tomorrow) we have a meeting to coordinate the emergency plan. We have to see whether the aid has been sufficient so far and we will discuss that, whether we should continue to subsidize and up to how much. But here clearly the way of energy efficiency is the urgent one. The sensitivity of the government is absolute, we have to defend our industry. We have always compared ourselves to France and Germany, but the scenario has completely changed. But it is true that we are losing competitiveness with other markets that do not suffer as much from the problem of rising energy prices. Measures that have caused some controversy, such as setting the thermostat at 27 degrees or turning off shop windows, have cut electricity consumption by more than 9%. Now we have the capacity to influence Europe with a tool that was needed, such as the gas cap.
–Are renewables a resource that can be used to end gas dependence?
-Since joining the government, we have convened two renewable energy auctions. Last December, the price was set at 30 euros/MWh and the previous one at 24. In December, the pricing at 30 surprised us because the sector was already very stressed and on the other hand, the renewable energy market continued with a relatively cheap price.
– But in what period of time could a reduction of the bill be assumed?
–The National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan sets a 2030 horizon for decarbonising the energy sector with renewables. Now we’ve increased resources by three with European funds, so we need to have the capacity to drive this transition and in a short time we can see the electricity market responding more to the mix we have than to an electricity market now governed for a European policy.
–What makes it difficult to start up the PERTE of the electric car?
–It is a project with an investment of 4,300 million in which we have launched more than 90% of the authorized investments. That is, we have already removed the lines, not only in the industrial part. There has been a lot of commotion with the preliminary resolution and it is an administrative procedure. I ask for a little patience. In the case of Ford, which has decided to leave, it was negative news for the ministry, but for them the project has changed and they could not meet the requirements, but they guarantee the investment in Valencia.
-Tourism has done very well in the summer, but the sector warns of a very difficult autumn.
-The valuation is very positive. Month after month we have improved the outlook and moved closer to pre-pandemic data. Looking ahead to the fall, we have seen this summer that people have continued to travel despite the uncertainty of war and inflation. At the moment and with all caution we still see a very good pace in September in terms of reservations and air capacity with over 9.6 million seats planned.
– Do you think the gas pipeline is the best solution? What construction period do you propose?
– We could make the investments now, but if they stay on Spanish territory, it will not serve the purpose. Yes or yes, we need the commitment of France and if we have it, we can start. We have to wait and see how we are going to finance it, because we have already committed European funds, but there is an opportunity with the loans. I think that we are indeed going to arrive at a European financing mechanism. The European Investment Bank comes to mind as a tool to finance these European projects. Europe will certainly find the instrument to fund a European project, this is European, and of course we will accelerate it. Vice President Ribera calculated the time in eight or nine months to have it ready in the part that suits us.
–The bottlenecks in the supply chains are causing some factories to stop production.
–We facilitate adaptation for companies. The solution is not short term, but medium term and is called industrial autonomy. They are called PERTE, bet on what is produced in other places, bring it to Europe and bring it to Spain, which is why we are making the investment effort. Some textile companies have already told me that logistics costs are so high that they have reduced costs by bringing part of the production to Spain. We now have an opportunity for the complete relocation of the Spanish industry, textile is an example, we need to reposition it, make it competitive and attractive. Maintaining a Spanish brand that is a very reputable brand in the world. Why not produce directly in Spain?
Source: La Verdad
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
