{"id":15403,"date":"2024-09-06T13:22:27","date_gmt":"2024-09-06T11:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/paco-cuervo-managing-director-of-impulso-participated-in-the-roundtable-on-industry-and-energy-at-the-ugt-asturias-summer-course\/"},"modified":"2026-11-06T13:41:27","modified_gmt":"2026-11-06T11:41:27","slug":"paco-cuervo-managing-director-of-impulso-participated-in-the-roundtable-on-industry-and-energy-at-the-ugt-asturias-summer-course","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/paco-cuervo-managing-director-of-impulso-participated-in-the-roundtable-on-industry-and-energy-at-the-ugt-asturias-summer-course\/","title":{"rendered":"Paco Cuervo, Managing Director of Impulso, participated in the roundtable on Industry and Energy at the UGT Asturias summer course"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”5\/6″][vc_empty_space el_class=”vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”]

Paco Cuervo, Managing Director of Impulso, participated in the roundtable on Industry and Energy at the UGT Asturias summer course<\/h1>
<\/div>

The Government is studying aid with Arcelor to build an electric furnace in Avil\u00e9s<\/h2><\/div>[vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1725623894112{margin-right: 20px !important;margin-left: 20px !important;padding-top: 20px !important;}”]Negotiations between the central government and Arcelor regarding the direct reduced iron (DRI) plant are “permanent,” as both parties have insisted over the last three years. However, beyond unblocking this investment\u2014which is vital to guaranteeing integrated steelmaking in Asturias\u2014the Executive is studying with the multinational the aid that could be granted to undertake the construction of a hybrid electric furnace in Avil\u00e9s. The project, similar to the one already being executed in Gij\u00f3n, is demanded by both the Administration and the unions, as it would avoid the need to reduce steel production in the region in the short term, when only one of the two blast furnaces remains operational.<\/p>\n

However, there is another aspect that makes this installation key, which Luis \u00c1ngel Colunga, Special Commissioner for the PERTE for Industrial Decarbonization, brought to the table yesterday: with another furnace consuming DRI, it would be more beneficial for Arcelor to produce it ‘in situ’. “It would be very difficult for a company that electrifies two steel mills, with such a strong production volume in Asturias, to import DRI,” he noted before participating in a roundtable on industry and energy in the context of decarbonization, as part of the Manuel Fern\u00e1ndez L\u00f3pez ‘Lito’ International Summer School organized by UGT. Furthermore, DRI is not easily transported because, among other factors, it possesses self-combustion and explosion potential.<\/p>\n

The goal is to ensure the DRI plant is built in Asturias, even if it requires a certain detour to make it more attractive to the steel company and, in the process, avoid reducing factory production. Consequently, “all sources of financing to electrify the Avil\u00e9s steel mill are being studied in great depth,” he explained.<\/p>\n

The decision by Arcelor, which is more interested in other markets such as India or the US, is complex, to the point that none of the DRI plants it had announced in Europe have yet received approval. They are affected by both projected operating costs and market weakness, as well as the increasing entry of non-EU steel at low prices. Thus, the Ministry of Industry is also negotiating with other bodies, such as the Ministry of Finance, for mechanisms that could facilitate production, such as increasing aid for indirect CO2 costs to the maximum allowed by Brussels, while also aiming to achieve competitive green hydrogen.<\/p>\n

Despite this, for the time being, ongoing projects cannot guarantee the prices that the industry would require. Yolanda Fern\u00e1ndez Montes, Director of Stakeholders, Management and Public Affairs Iberia at EDP, also referred to this issue, addressing the complexity of their project to turn the Abo\u00f1o thermal plant into a hydrogen valley. “We have to bring water to the facility to produce hydrogen, build the hydrogen pipelines to deliver it to customers’ facilities, and ensure that they buy that hydrogen,” she recounted\u2014all accompanied by significant bureaucracy that greatly extends deadlines, and innovative technological developments. Added to this is the fact that this hydrogen will be more expensive than current fossil fuels, leading her to call for mechanisms that make it easier for industry to opt for it.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, she highlighted the current bottleneck in the electrical grids, which could thwart companies’ electrification projects, both due to the increase in current and future demand and a usage that is far from optimal and “hijacks” them. “Grid access is planned as if it were used all day, capacity is blocked, and we are finding that many companies ask us for a power increase to grow their business and it cannot be granted,” she criticized. Additionally, planning is done every five years “and if something is not foreseen, it cannot be done.” Hence, she spoke of a “real blockage” of projects and insisted that “management must be reviewed.”<\/p>\n

Unrealistic expectations<\/p>\n

Paco Cuervo, Managing Director of the architecture, engineering, and consultancy firm Impulso, also participated in the roundtable, delving into the complexity of the NextGeneration funds, but also the false expectations created around them. Likewise, he insisted that “if a project is good and mature, there is aid available, both in grants and financing,” although he clarified that demands must be realistic. Furthermore, he focused on the importance not only of non-repayable grants but also of financial support, despite the fact that, as Colunga acknowledged, they are failing in the PERTEs.<\/p>\n

Another issue addressed was the breakdown of the European single market, as Brussels has given the green light to State aid, a situation that countries with greater financial muscle exploit more. Likewise, all three expressed optimism regarding the opportunities for Asturias, “with projects like never seen before,” availability of aid, and fundamental industrial and energy experience.<\/p>\n

Prior to this roundtable, which was moderated by the Deputy Head of Economics at EL COMERCIO, Noelia A. Erausquin, another was held on access to housing and the current housing crisis, featuring deputies Monchu Garc\u00eda (PSOE); Susana Fern\u00e1ndez Arias (PP); Delia<\/p>\n

Campomanes (Convocatoria por Asturies IU-M\u00e1s Pa\u00eds-IAS), Adri\u00e1n Pumares (Foro Asturias), and Covadonga Tom\u00e9 (Grupo Mixto), who proposed various ways to make this constitutional right accessible.<\/p>\n

Source: El Comercio<\/a>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column css_animation=”left-to-right” width=”1\/6″ offset=”vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_empty_space][vc_wp_search][vc_basic_grid post_type=”post” max_items=”3″ element_width=”12″ item=”2633″ initial_loading_animation=”none” grid_id=”vc_gid:1726743626280-b38e31a5-620c-9″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”5\/6″][vc_empty_space el_class=”vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1725623894112{margin-right: 20px !important;margin-left: 20px !important;padding-top: 20px !important;}”]Negotiations between the central government and Arcelor regarding the direct reduced iron (DRI) plant are “permanent,” as both parties have insisted over the last three years. However, beyond unblocking this investment\u2014which is vital to guaranteeing integrated steelmaking in Asturias\u2014the Executive is studying with the multinational the aid that could be granted to undertake the construction of a hybrid electric furnace […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13091,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rs_blank_template":"","rs_page_bg_color":"","slide_template_v7":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[286,283],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media-repository","category-news"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-jpg-e1725622751835.webp",1600,1200,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-jpg-e1725622751835.webp",1600,1200,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-jpg-e1725622751835.webp",1600,1200,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-150x150.webp",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-300x225.webp",300,225,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-1024x768.webp",1024,768,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-1536x1152.webp",1536,1152,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-jpg-e1725622751835.webp",1600,1200,false],"post-thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-100x100.webp",100,100,true],"bg-image":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-jpg-e1725622751835.webp",1600,1200,false],"fullwidth-landscape":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-1170x500.webp",1170,500,true],"sidebar-landscape":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-880x380.webp",880,380,true],"sidebar-auto":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-880x660.webp",880,660,true],"portfolio-square":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-450x350.webp",450,350,true],"portfolio-auto":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-450x338.webp",450,338,true],"square":["https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/noticia_el-comercio_03-09-2024-450x450.webp",450,450,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"Alvaro Rodriguez","author_link":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/author\/dragon\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"Media repository<\/a> News<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"[vc_row][vc_column width=”5\/6″][vc_empty_space el_class=”vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1725623894112{margin-right: 20px !important;margin-left: 20px !important;padding-top: 20px !important;}”]Negotiations between the central government and Arcelor regarding the direct reduced iron (DRI) plant are “permanent,” as both parties have insisted over the last three years. However, beyond unblocking this investment\u2014which is vital to guaranteeing integrated steelmaking in Asturias\u2014the Executive is studying with the multinational…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15403"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16436,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15403\/revisions\/16436"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13091"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.impulso.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}