The electricity company recalls that Repsol has already been sanctioned twice in Great Britain for this reason. Repsol has responded that the electricity company is nervous because it has lost customers.
Iberdrola has filed a lawsuit against Repsol under the Unfair Competition Act for environmental money laundering or ‘greenwashing’ in advertising, sources at the electricity company said.
The lawsuit was filed on February 21 at the Santander Commercial Courts and is filed under Articles 5, 7 and 18 of the aforementioned law, which deal with deception, misleading omissions and illegal advertising within the framework of advertising campaigns and corporate communications.
According to the plaintiff, Repsol advertises itself as a sustainable company, a leader in the energy transition, protecting the environment and committed to reducing its carbon footprint and mitigating the effects of climate change.
In turn, Repsol sources assure that this initiative is fruit of Iberdrola’s “nervousness” having to trade in an increasingly competitive market and in which it has lost customers in the past year.
Iberdrola sources say there are a total of 15 references on the Repsol website that involve ‘greenwashing’, as well as three advertising campaigns specifically: ‘Advanced biofuels, an alternative for mobility’ (January 2023), ‘Renewable hydrogen’ (January 2023) and ‘Connecting energies’ (March 2023).
The same sources have recalled that Repsol has been has already been penalized twice for ‘greenwashing’ by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the United Kingdom through campaigns with messages similar to those of Spain. In addition, it had to withdraw a campaign that said: “At Repsol we are developing biofuels and synthetic fuels to achieve net zero emissions.”
According to the plaintiff, despite promoting sustainable initiatives, Repsol attempts to promote the use of fuels with its multi-product offering and although it focuses its advertising on sustainability, this is a “minor part” of its business, in addition to omitting in its communication the company’s main activity and the actual environmental impact of its products and services.
Likewise, Iberdrola sources indicate that Repsol, which is the Spanish company with the highest greenhouse gas emissions (GEI) defines itself in its communications as a leader in the field of sustainability and energy transition.
In addition, it says it will have spent 82% of its investments in 2022 on fossil fuels only 0.82% in renewable energy productionadding that only 0.4% of revenues that year came from renewable energy generation activities.
Source: EITB
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.
