Two former politicians join Catalan companies

2026 begins with new appointments at Catalan companies, including two familiar faces from Spanish politics. Former minister and former Speaker of the Congress Meritxell Batet joins the board of Sateliot, and former regional minister Àngels Chacón will head LLYC's Barcelona office. AstraZeneca's subsidiary in Spain and Iberia also starts the year with the appointment of female executives.

Batet, new independent director of Sateliot

Shareholders of the satellite telecommunications company Sateliot have supported the appointment of Meritxell Batet, the former Socialist Minister of Territorial Policy and Public Administration and former Speaker of the Congress, as an independent director. Although she left frontline politics in 2023—when she ceased to be Speaker of the Congress—Batet remains linked to the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) as president of its National Council. The approval of the former politician's appointment took place at Sateliot's December general meeting, which also authorized the election of José María García Orois as an observer to the company's highest decision-making body. García Orois, who was appointed by the Spanish government, is the business development director of the Spanish Society for Digital and Artificial Intelligence (SSEDI). It is worth noting that the Spanish State controls almost 19% of the Catalan company. In addition, the company's shareholders also include Indra (4.81%)—of which the State owns 28% through SEPO—, Cellnex (1.6%), and Global Portfolio Investments (11.7%), the holding company of the Domínguez de la Maza family, owners of the group.

Àngels Chacón will head LLYC's Barcelona office

Corporate communications and marketing consultancy LLYC has announced the appointment of former Catalan Minister of Business Àngels Chacón as the new Managing Director of LLYC Barcelona. The former politician joined the company in 2022 as Director of Corporate Strategy and will now lead operations in the Catalan capital alongside María Cura, a partner at the firm, who will assume the role of Executive Chairman for the Catalan market. Chacón holds a law degree from the University of Barcelona, a postgraduate degree in talent management in organizations, and specializes in international trade. During her time with the Catalan government, she also served as Director General of Industry and has over 15 years of experience in the private sector as an export director. Cura, also a law graduate, joined LLYC in 2009 and has been the Managing Director of the Barcelona office for the past 15 years.

Laura Colón, new president of AstraZeneca Spain

British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has appointed Laura Colón as the new president of AstraZeneca Spain to lead the company's strategy in this market. In addition to this role, Colón will be the site leader from the AstraZeneca Global Hub in Barcelona, ​​which, according to the group, has established itself as a driver of biomedical, digital, and commercial innovation in Europe. This international center currently has more than 1,600 employees and aims to make 20 new medicines available to patients before the end of the decade. Colón holds a degree in psychology from the Autonomous University of Madrid and has executive training in business, strategy, and innovation. Since December 2023, she has led the oncology area at AstraZeneca in Spain. She joined AstraZeneca in 2019 as head of the lung cancer franchise, and in 2021 she moved to Singapore to assume the role of international director of the lung, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, and gynecological cancer franchises. Previously, she worked at companies such as Roche, Biogen, and AbbVie.

Vueling's finance director moves to Iberia

Iberia has announced that Joana de Epalza has been appointed Chief Financial Officer, following her tenure at Vueling, where she held the position of Chief Financial and Transformation Officer since 2023. De Epalza brings over two decades of experience in finance and management roles at various multinational companies, including as Chief Financial Officer. A graduate in Economics from the University of Bordeaux Montesquieu, she has led financial restructuring processes, managed corporate integrations, and overseen complex multinational projects throughout her career.