Repsol S A : Spain and Portugal focus on collaboration to become leaders in sustainable mobility

The Repsol Foundation, along with the Confederation of Portuguese Business (CIP), the Hispano-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce (CHP), and the Portuguese-Spanish Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCILE) sponsored the "Iberian Conference on Sustainable Mobility: Challenges and Opportunities in Decarbonizing Mobility." At the event held in Lisbon, participants analyzed the keys to advancing toward sustainable and smart mobility in Spain and Portugal.

Portugal's secretary of state for urban mobility, Jorge Delgado, Repsol Chairman, Antonio Brufau, the mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas, and the CIP(Confederation of Portuguese Business) chairman, António Saraiva, opened the event.

The Repsol Chairman highlighted the chance to promote the transformation of mobility and make it more efficient and smarter, that is, that uses proven, well-known, and efficient technologies and, at the same time, is committed to the latest technological developments, with the aim of improving services and quality of life of citizens, helping to reduce emissions and optimize their resources.

For his part, the secretary of state stated that "mobility is at a second technological turning point, and the need to take a disruptive leap in the way we move and transport ourselves is obvious, both people and goods. The mobility of the future will be environmentally-friendly, shared, connected, and autonomous".

The mayor of Lisbon said "there are three essential challenges: economic, which must ensure that growth is compatible with the reduction of emissions. Growth has to be compatible with the fight against climate change, and Europe has already shown that this is possible, as it has grown while striving to reduce emissions. Technological, which through science will have to solve the issue of production costs, and social, because you have to raise people's awareness of the need for this change".

The CIP chairman indicated "the priority role of the viability and safety of the automotive industry in its transformation towards the sustainable mobility of the future".

The first round table on innovation and digitalization for mobility brought together the City Company for Parking and Mobility in Lisbon (EMEL) chairman, Luis Filipe Marques; the director-general for Mobility Planning and Infrastructures for Madrid City Council, Lola Ortiz; the secretary-general of the National Association of Two-Wheel Industries (ABIMOTA), Gil Nadais; the head of Smart Systems in Vehicles at the University Institute of Automobile Research (INSIA) at the Polytehcnic University of Madrid, Felipe Jiménez; the representative of Alba Innovación at Petronor, Aitor Arzuaga, and the representative from the Board of Directors at the Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering, Technology and Science in Portugal (INESC TEC), José Carlos Caldeira.

The speakers agreed on the rigorous work being carried out by the public administration, the energy sector, the transport industry, and science to continue advancing in the development of technologies and services for the decarbonization of mobility, especially through digitalization, energy efficiency, and new fuels.

In this block, it was made clear that the mobility of the future requires a single vision, promoting technological neutrality and the coordinated action of all agents, together with society, to achieve the objectives of decarbonization within the framework of a fair and inclusive energy transition that leaves no one behind.

Subsequently, the chairman of the Manufacturers Association for the Automotive Industry (AFIA), José Couto; the secretary general of the Portuguese Automobile Association (ACAP), Helder Pedro; the director general of the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (ANFAC), José López-Tafall; the director general of the Spanish Association of Automotive Suppliers (SERNAUTO), José Portilla, and the executive vice president of FACONAUTO, Marta Blázquez, took part in the second round table, focussed on the challenges and opportunities of the automotive sector in the decarbonization of transport on the Iberian Peninsula.

All of them highlighted the strength of the automotive industry in Spain and Portugal, and the path ahead to become a benchmark in the new mobility of the future: decarbonized, sustainable, digitalized, and autonomous. A process that requires commitment, work, and innovation throughout the value chain. The participants highlighted that it is a challenge faced by technology, and for which it is necessary to promote a regulation that preserves competitiveness and employment in the automotive sector.

Finally, the Presidents of the Hispano-Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, António Calçada de Sá, and of the General Meeting of Partners of the Portuguese-Spanish Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Francisco Dezcallar, highlighted the importance of collaboration between Spain and Portugal to work together on new solutions that will enable both countries to become benchmarks in the mobility of the future. Both stand out for the strength of the automotive sector and the commitment of companies and institutions to the energy transition.

This conference is part of Open Room, the Repsol Foundation's digital space focussed on promoting debate and rigorous knowledge surrounding the keys to the energy transition. The full video of the event will be available for free upon registration at: openroom.fundacionrepsol.com/en/.