The general blackout of April 2025, like all traumatic events for the population, changed many things. Spanish strategic infrastructures, from communication towers to power plants, and essential services such as hospitals, have strived to find alternatives to stay afloat when there is no electricity. Most of these hotspots have traditional diesel generators, which cover their short-term needs, but also place logistical limits on activity. Eliminating these obstacles is the raison d'être of Atom H2, one of the most acclaimed startups in the Catalan ecosystem, which closes the electrical wound with renewable generation and a patented hydrogen technology. "We want to be the new standard for generators," says Anna Martín, one of the project's co-founders, in conversation with ARA.

In the heart of the Cadí-Moixeró Natural Park, the Cadí tunnel, an infrastructure owned by the Generalitat de Catalunya, is much more than an infrastructure: it is an essential connection axis between regions and a key piece of mobility in the Pyrenees. With more than five kilometers in length, it is a strategic corridor that concentrates vehicle flows throughout the year.

With the continuity of Pedro Sánchez's government in the spotlight, the general secretary of CCOO, Unai Sordo, has come out in defense of the president of the Spanish executive: "I believe he will not step down from the presidency, nor do I think he should, he must exhaust all that remains of his term", he stated during his speech at the summer course of the Menéndez Pelayo International University and the Association of Journalists of Economic Information, held this week in Santander.

The housing crisis is dominating economic, political and social discussion at all levels. The CEO of Iberdrola Spain, Mario Ruiz-Tagle, has drawn on this concern to warn that the electricity sector is experiencing a "similar phenomenon" and to demand action.

Veolia, the French multinational that controls 70% of Aigües de Barcelona, plans to invest around 1 billion euros in Spain until 2030, an average of 200 million per year, according to the company's head in the State, Daniel Tugues.

The Strait of Hormuz continues to be the focus of global economic activity. Enagás CEO Arturo Gonzalo Aizpiri has stated that, if the peace agreement and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz are confirmed, gas futures markets will not recover "full price normality" until "the end of next year or the beginning of 2028".

The Efficient Energy Cluster of Catalonia (CEEC) celebrated last night the 13th edition of the Night of Efficiency, the major annual meeting of the Catalan energy sector. The event, held at the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya, brought together more than 750 professionals, companies, start-ups, research centers, and institutional representatives in an evening dedicated to energy efficiency, innovation, talent, and the energy transition, and served to vindicate the key role of the energy sector in business competitiveness, the decarbonization of the economy, technological innovation, the transformation of the productive fabric, and access to a more efficient, sustainable energy model closer to citizens.

The electricity company Iberdrola commemorated this Friday afternoon in Bilbao the 125 years of its birth. The multinational improved at the end of April its business forecasts for this year to improve at the end of April its business forecasts for this year, after obtaining a net profit of 1,711 million euros in the first quarter. Although it is 14.6% less than in the same period of the previous year, it points to new business opportunities in electricity grids and artificial intelligence, while it does not contemplate "significant" financial impacts due to the conflict in the Middle East. The company chaired by Ignacio Sánchez Galán closed 2025 with a record profit of 6,285 million euros, 12% more than the previous year.

Workshops, recreational activities, in-person exhibitions, and digital resources on self-consumption with solar panels, energetic rehabilitation of buildings, energy certification, charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, and many other related topics flood the months of June and July during the European Sustainable Energy Week in different municipalities of Catalonia. The campaign, an initiative of the European Commission with the objective of promoting energy efficiency and renewable energies in the European Union, opens a period of reflection to rethink our relationship with energy. Conferences, workshops, visits to facilities, competitions, and all kinds of activities are organized throughout Europe and are open to the general public, and are also aimed at energy sector professionals, authorities, companies, and NGOs, among others.

Spain is "better positioned" than others in the energy crisis due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, due to the war in Iran, but it will not be able to escape its effects. This was stated by the presidents of Repsol, Antoni Brufau, and Naturgy, Francisco Reynés, during a round table within the framework of the Annual Meeting of the Cercle d'Economia, held in Barcelona.

Green light from Brussels to the Spanish anti-blackout mechanism, which includes millionaire aid to electricity companies to guarantee the stability of the electricity supply. The European Commission has authorized the Spanish state to compensate with up to 9 billion euros over 10 years (900 million each year) the most stable technologies – such as gas thermal power plants – so that they provide "firmness" to the electricity system and are available when it is necessary to inject more electricity into the system or control demand.

The largest energy cooperative in Europe is based in Girona. What began in 2010 as a project linked to the UdG seeking to break the oligopoly of the big electricity companies has managed to become a recognized player in the Catalan energy landscape and also in the State as a whole, with 87,000 members.

As Pedro Sánchez announced at the end of last year, the Spanish government has set the goal that, by 2035, no more combustion vehicles will be sold. To achieve this, the head of the executive presented the Auto Spain 2030 Plan, also called the Auto+ plan, which, through 25 measures comprised in five pillars, aims to boost innovation in the automotive industry in Spanish territory. This Thursday, at an event held at Casa Seat in Barcelona, the sector presented the opportunities that the plan can create in Catalonia. "We have a historic opportunity to lead the new era of mobility," assured the CEO of Seat and Cupra, Markus Haupt.

A large part of the world looks with concern towards the Strait of Hormuz, the passage that connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean and through which a fifth of the hydrocarbons that reached the international market passed before the United States and Israel decided to attack Iran. Hydrocarbons are the basis of fossil fuels (oil and natural gas) and, currently, are essential for generating energy and manufacturing plastics. Many European countries fear that if the war continues and the blockade of the strait persists, as well as attacks on refineries and petrochemical plants in the Middle East, oil derivatives such as kerosene, which powers airplanes, may begin to run out. Faced with this situation, in Spain, eyes are not focused far away, but rather on the eight refineries of Repsol, BP, and Moeve that are still operational – among them, the one in the Tarragona petrochemical complex – which have become a breath of fresh air in the face of the threat of hydrocarbon shortages.

With a global map marked by geopolitical tensions, armed conflicts, and the struggle for hegemony among great powers, the world faces a new stage of uncertainty also in economic terms. “The new signs of the times strengthen nations and countries, by themselves, can do very little,” warned Pol Morillas. According to the president of CIDOB, the global interdependence that for years had contributed to ensuring stability “is now instrumentalized by the great powers” through tariffs or new political pressure formulas, in a context that goes far beyond the conflict in the Strait of Hormuz.

Almost a year ago, the Iberian Peninsula was plunged into darkness for hours. What initially seemed like a daily problem –"did the fuses blow at home?", some wondered– escalated when traffic lights, metros, and social services like hospitals lost power. This also happened when mobile communication stopped working or worked very little, and radio became almost the only channel to try to figure out what was going on. The State suffered an electrical "zero electric", meaning a total collapse of the electrical system: "We estimate to restore supply in about 6 to 10 hours", announced Red Eléctrica, the Spanish electric system operator. In some areas, power was not restored for up to 12 hours.

The fable of the cicada and the ant contrasts those who spend the summer entertained without worrying about winter – the cicada – with those who seek and store food to face the cold months – the ant –. When bad weather arrives, the former finds herself destitute and asks the latter for food, who eventually takes pity on her. During the worst years of the Great Recession, this story resonated across Europe: the State and other southern countries were seen as those who did not do their homework, while the northern countries, led by Germany, were the ants. Dutchman Jeroen Dijsselbloem summed it up like this when he was president of the Eurogroup in 2017: "I cannot spend money on alcohol and women and then ask for help".

The major distribution companies in Spain have warned that private consumption shows "slight signs of exhaustion" caused by the war in Iran, at the annual meeting that the entity grouping them (Aecoc) held this Tuesday in Barcelona. Domestic consumption and investment have marked the good performance of the Spanish economy once the pandemic hecatomb was overcome. Now, the president of Aecoc, José María Bonmatí, has assured that "we are still in very positive ratios", but has warned that "the consumer confidence index is not particularly sky-high". "Crises begin and end when the consumer perceives it that way," he recalled.

After Iran announced the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, oil and gas prices have plummeted in the markets. Specifically, on Friday afternoon, the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil – the benchmark in Europe – fell by more than 10% and stood at around $89. Futures for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude—the benchmark in the United States—stood at around $83, almost 12% less than on Thursday. At some points during the conflict, the price of a barrel of Brent had touched $120. Despite Friday's drop, the price of oil remains above the $72 it stood at just before the attack by the United States and Israel on Iran.

A few days before the first anniversary of the electrical blackout on April 28th, new details about its possible causes continue to emerge. This Friday, the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) explained that it has initiated several sanctioning proceedings to determine the circumstances of the blackout. Thus, the regulatory body assures that, as a result of the investigations, "various indications of non-compliance" have been detected, some of which have been maintained for "prolonged periods of time," which could constitute administrative infractions.