The CEO of Iberdrola Spain, Mario Ruiz-Tagle, defended the company's actions on Monday in Congress regarding the investigated power outage and questioned the impartiality of the report prepared by European experts on the incident.
His appearance has taken place within the framework of the Investigation Commission of the blackout of last April 28, where the responsibilities of the different actors in the Spanish electricity system are also analyzed.
The CNMC opens proceedings and "orders responsibilities"
Ruiz-Tagle has positively valued the opening of twenty sanctioning files by the National Markets and Competition Commission, considering that the body "is not siding with one or the other," but rather is differentiating technical responsibilities among the operators involved.
According to what has been explained, this action allows "to take the discussion to the technical field" and helps to identify possible regulatory failures in the electrical system.
The chief executive officer has pointed out that the classification of the files establishes different levels of severity, pointing to possible "very serious" infractions in the case of the system operator, Red Eléctrica de España (REE), versus "serious" infractions attributed to companies such as Iberdrola, Endesa, or Naturgy.
Criticism of the European report and debate on the system's operation
The executive has questioned the report by the panel of European experts that analyzed the blackout, to which he has attributed "inconsistencies" and errors of interpretation.
In his speech, he defended that the electrical system failed due to operational issues and not structural problems, insisting on the need for greater prudence in the management of the system by REE.
Ruiz-Tagle has also underlined that the system operator is the only actor with the capacity to compromise the continuity of supply in real time, while other agents are limited to the maintenance and operation of facilities.
Transparency, regulation and energy debate
The chief executive has called for greater transparency in the investigation, including full access to available information, and has criticized the partial leak of audios related to the case. He has also warned of the existence of "regulatory gaps" in the electricity system and has defended the need to update regulations to adapt them to the evolution of the energy sector.
On the energy front, he has defended that the Spanish system is "safe and competitive", although he has warned of the lack of investment in distribution networks to respond to the growing demand for connection.
Debate on the energy model
Ruiz-Tagle has placed the blackout in the context of the energy mix debate, defending that it is not a discussion between renewables and nuclear power, but about system balance.
Likewise, he has reiterated his favorable position on maintaining nuclear energy within the electrical system, considering that its cost is competitive compared to other technologies in situations of energy tension.
Iberdrola's appearance is part of a parliamentary investigation that continues to analyze the causes of the blackout and the possible responsibilities of the different operators.