ACCIONA Magazine 76: the Global Challenge of Access to Water

N.76 JANUARY 2021
The Sao Paulo Subway:
an economic and
social engine
TRANSPORT
Renewable energies,
a source of present
and future work
EMPLOYMENT
THE GLOBAL CHALLENGE
OF ACCESS TO WATER
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M
Y
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MY
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CMY
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3
ACCESSTO GOOD
WATER IS NOW POSSIBLE
ne of the tendencies we have as humans is our determination to impose limi-
tations on ourselves and put off major decisions – having children, starting a
company, investing savings, leaving our comfort zone – not so much because
of cautious risk calculation, but due to a lack of confidence in our own abilities.
The price may be a missed opportunity because we reacted at the wrong time.
EDITORIAL
3
This mental block is currently
affecting the entire planet as it faces
the responsibility of creating a bet-
ter world, capable of meeting basic
needs such as availability of water
in sufficient quantity and quality.
When we dare to do something,
we’ll say we wish we’d done it ear-
lier; we’ll question our insistence on
putting a curb on the possibilities
that are already out there.
When it comes to water, we
have everything except univer-
sal access. We have the obligation
to make this happen as a human
right, and we have the opportunity
to turn it into an economic driver.
We have much of the financial cash
flow required to develop the pro-
jects needed by a planet that will
be even thirstier in two decades.
On top of that, we have the tech-
nology today that will make them
profitable, to pay for themselves,
if we write sensible laws, enforce
them, and encourage public-pri-
vate partnerships.
According to the UN, achieving the
Sustainable Development Goals is
72% dependent on infrastructure,
but investment planned pre-Cov-
id up until 2030 only covers three
quarters of that. Can we afford 75%
but not 85, 90, 100% when it comes
to avoiding much higher costs and
funding our survival?
We talk about business allied with
positive social impact. For ACCIONA,
both aspects are becoming increas-
ingly intertwined: in renewable
energy as a source of employment
when it is most needed, by invest-
ing in education at all levels, or in the
management of large works such as
the Sao Paulo Metro.
This is why the acciona.org foun-
dation model, as described by its
Director, is the inspiration behind
our social commitment. Being more
profitable means, in turn, being more
sustainable. Access to water? Even
more, access to a smart planet.
www.acciona.com
We have
much of the
financial cash flow
required to develop
the projects needed
by a planet that will
be even thirstier in
two decades
O
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4
SUMMARY
EDITORIAL
Universal access to
good quality water
is now possible.
03
IN NUMBERS
3D PRINTING
Global center in
Dubai with the
planet’s biggest additive printer.
06
NEWS
THELATEST
ATACCIONA
The birth of
ACCIONA Cultural Engineering,
a driving force in markets in
Australian and Chilean markets and
global sustainability recognitions.
10
INTERVIEW
It’s not welfare and it’s not just
a one-off investment that ends
up being forgotten.
The acciona.org foundation
stands the test of time with
energy, water and sanitation
projects based on the trust of
local communities. Its Director,
José Gabriel Martín Fernández,
explains how.
20
“WE DEVELOP PROJECTS
ADAPTED TO LOCAL
CONTEXT AND CULTURE”
08HISTORY
Divers, hyperbaric chambers,
a new port, 14 kilometers of
steelworks and 14,000 workers.
THE AVILES PLAN
TRANSPORT
L6 OF THE SAO
PAULO METRO
The biggest contract
in the company’s history: sustainable
mobility with social impact.
12
EDUCATION
THE MOST WORTHWHILE
INVESTMENT
Educational incentives from primary through to university
in 13 countries across four continents. 16
Published by:
Department of Corporate Image
and Global Marketing.
ACCIONA, S.A.
Avda. de Europa, 18.
P. E. La Moraleja. 28108 Alcobendas.
Madrid. Tel.: +34 91 663 2287
Email: Elisa Baños
elisa.banos.yague@acciona.com
Design and Production:
Factoría, PRISA Noticias.
National publication no.:
M-35.445-1997.
Cover: Sean Mackaoui.
The paper used for this
magazine is chlorine-
free and comes from
sustainable forests. The
FSC Certification, awarded
by the Forest Stewardship
Council, ensures that
forests are managed
responsibly and that
paper is traceable, with a
verifiable chain of custody
throughout the process
of transforming and
manufacturing the product.
TWITTER FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM YOUTUBE
Follow us
on
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5
Nº 76 January 2021
CLEAN ENERGY
THE ISLAND OF
SUSTAINABLE
HYDROGEN
A pioneering project
in Mallorca is proving that green H2
is a
great and increasingly aﬀordable option.
46
HOW IT WORKS
CUSTOMIZINGA
SUPER-TUNNEL
BORINGMACHINE
Specialist technicians
ﬁne tune the titan, making sure it
performs at its best in every tunnel.
42
COMIC
CLIMATICA
GIVES THE
WORLD A DRINK
It’s looking like it’s all about water today,
and we’re not talking rain. She keeps a
watchful eye on every single droplet.
50
WATER
The planet is already thirsty. What is
going to happen when population grows
and climate crisis worsens? Sustainable
Development Goal 6, a basic human
right, can be achieved through
engineering, legislation and investment.
UNIVERSAL
ACCESS TO
GOOD QUALITY
WATER
26
EMPLOYMENT
Renewable energies
generate three times
more jobs than fossil
fuels and are on the
brink of providing a
massive boost for a
qualified workforce.
RENEWABLES,
A GOLD MINE
FOR JOBS
36
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OtherACCIONAprintersapplythe
Extrusiontechnique,whichallows
6DEGREES OF
FREEDOM
6
IN NUMBERS
InDubaiACCIONAhasaglobal3Dprintingcenterforproducing
moreeﬃcientandsustainableinfrastructure.
The largest on the planet for
printing technology:
1. Centralized remote
control with ACCIONA
software
2. Fast execution time:
<24 HOURS
3. Works in situ or in any industrial facility
4. Wide range of resistances depending
on use
5. Modular design and reusable for a
circular economy
6. Plus a freedom it shares with the
POWDER BED technique: structural and
non-structural applications in:
CIVIL AND CONSTRUCTION ENGINEERING,
NEW URBAN SPACES AND CONSERVATION
OF HISTORIC AND CULTURAL HERITAGE
It overlays 5millimeter layers
using special high-resistance concrete
(up to 50megapascals) with complete
form freedom and 0formwork
THE WORLD’S
BIGGEST
PRINTER
The best option
for producing
parts with
complex forms
6X3X2
METERS
It uses the POWDER BED
additive technique

7
Both techniques share
3MAJOR
OBJECTIVES
1. Automate processes
2. Improve efficiency:
Some studies estimate this between
15% and 60%depending on the activity
3. Lower environmental impact:
Saving on CO2
emissions
with a reduction of up to
30%in material used
THE DEMAND
••Responds to the Dubai 3D Printing
Strategy for turning the metropolis into
an international Hub for this technology.
••25%. The percentage of the new
constructions that, by law, must be
printed in the Emirate by 2025.
••16%. Growth of the global 3D printing
market by 2025.
THE PROJECTS 4 years of development and 4 milestones in civil engineering, urban spaces and heritage conservation:
•Exact replica of the
San Pedro de las Dueñas
Romanesque arch.
2.2 x 3.3 meters.
•Pedestrian walkway in
Alcobendas. The world’s
first civil engineering
printed work. 12 x 15
meters and 30 tons.
•Spiral stairway 2 meters
high. The first in 3D
concrete with a generative
design that calculated
2,000 structure options.
•Projects for more than
70 bus stops for the
Emirate of Ajman.
•Made with DShape® 3D printer.
IN NUMBERS

8
HISTORY
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9
by Patricia Alcorta
Multiply the 14 men in the photo by a thousand
and you’ll have the maximum number of work-
ers employed in the works, one of the largest
in a European steel industry that was starting
to get back on its feet and build furnaces in the
aftermath of World War II.
The steel industry was a core part of the
Aviles Plan. A new port was needed for the
transit of coal, ore, parts, machinery. The
dredger Pax was needed to make the sea
deep enough once again and works included
a dry dock with foundations sunk 20 metres
under the marshlands, a sluice gate to close it
and large-scale industrial facilities stretching
along 14 kilometres.
90% of the megaproject was designed and
executed by Entrecanales and Távora during
the 1950s. This included training the huge
workforce that transformed their will into
operational prowess, plus the accommoda-
tion logistics and medical assistance for the
equivalent of three Roman legions.
José Entrecanales Ibarra, the company’s
co-founder, was well aware of the risk of
compressed air and designed a hyperbaric
chamber, the ﬁrst of its kind in the country, to
stabilize the compression of divers working on
the underwater foundations.
A NEW PORT, STEELWORKS AND
THOUSANDS OF WORKERS.
THE LARGEST SPANISH STEEL
INDUSTRY PROJECT IN DECADES.
THE AVILES PLAN
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10
NEWS
Thecomplexconsistsofthe
MalgaridaIandIIplantsinAtacama,
withacapacityof238MWp.Thiswill
bethecompany’sseventhrenewable
facilityinChile,representingan
investmentof170milliondollars.The
complexisduetostartoperatingin
2021,generatingenergyequivalent
tothedemandofaround280,000
homesandpreventingtheemission
of512,000tonsofCO2
peryear.
“Duringthelasttwoyearswe’vebeen
focusingmostofourinvestmentson
renewableenergyinChile.Sincelate
2019we’vesetuptwowindfarms
andtwophotovoltaicplantsinvolving
aninvestmentofcloseto600million
dollars.Thisnewprojectreﬂects
conﬁdenceinChileanditsrenewable
development,”remarksJoséIgnacio
Escobar,DirectorGeneralofEnergy
forSouthAmericaatACCIONA.
CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW PHOTOVOLTAIC COMPLEX IN CHILE
ACCIONA has completed the acquisition – announced at the end
of 2019 – of most of the projects of Lendlease Engineering, a
Lendlease subsidiary. The operation, valued at 99 million euros,
together with the new contracts awarded in recent months,
increases ACCIONA’s infrastructure portfolio in Australia to 2.47
billion euros in both the public and private sectors.
With the incorporation of the new projects and the team from
Lendlease Engineering, ACCIONA consolidates its position as one
of the leading infrastructure companies in a strategic market and
accelerates its business growth rate.
“We’regoingtoexpandthevolumeofworkandthescopeofour
worksfromlargecivilconstructionprojectstotransportinfrastructure,
roadsandbridges,aswellassmallerandmorespecializedcontracts
fromatechnicalpointofview,”explainsBedeNoonan,CEOof
ACCIONAinAustraliaandNewZealandfortheInfrastructurebusiness.
In addition, the company has just been awarded the contract to
expand a six-kilometer section of the Bruce Highway, north of
Brisbane, for 84 million euros. The highway is one of the region’s
key roads and its expansion from four to six lanes will help the
economic recovery of the Sunshine Coast tourism industry.
INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS ACQUISITION AND A HIGHWAY EXTENSION
BOOSTING LEADERSHIP
IN THE AUSTRALIAN MARKET
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11
NEWS
The new name, which replaces ACCIONA Producciones y Diseño
(APD), completes the acquisition and integration process of
Spanish events agency Auriga. The new brand consolidates the
company’s European leadership in the museum business and its
position among the world’s largest events specialists (with more
than 800 events per year), with museum and exhibition projects
in 38 countries and three decades of experience. These projects
have won least 122 international awards for design, innovation
and sustainability.
The new brand reaﬃrms its commitment to the model of cultural
engineering and new technology at the service of historic
heritage, for example in groundbreaking interventions in the
sector such as mapping the Fires of the Apostle in Santiago de
Compostela or the immersive spectacle that closed the Prado
Museum bicentennial in Madrid.
Its philosophy is based on innovation, creativity and technology
with disruptive formats and methodologies, along with
sustainability and carbon neutrality as its hallmark feature. The
aim is to transmit memorable experiences that highlight the
cultural heritage, tradition and history of not only cities and
countries but also of companies and private clients, in addition to
its business activities at trade fairs and corporate events.
THE BIRTH OF ACCIONA CULTURAL ENGINEERING
THE MUSEUMS AND EVENTS BUSINESS CHANGES ITS BRAND NAME AND EMBARKS ON A NEW ERA
THE COMPANY WITH THE BEST
SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING
ON THE IBEX35 IS THE WORLD’S
GREENEST ELECTRICITY COMPANY
According to the latest ranking from consultancy ﬁrm EcoAct, ACCIONA has
shown the best sustainability results out of all companies on the Spanish
stock exchange and occupies third position in the global ranking. The score
is calculated from 64 sustainability indicators, including measurement,
governance, emission reduction, collaboration and innovation. The
company has maintained its presence on the list since 2016.
ACCIONA has also come out on top once again as the greenest
electricity company on the planet for the sixth consecutive year,
according to the New Energy Top 100 Green Utilities ranking. This
ranking is compiled by independent consultancy Energy Intelligence
and scores are based on CO2
emissions, renewable installed capacity
and contribution to a low carbon electricity system.
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12
THE GREATEST
I N F R A S T R U C T U R E
I N O U R H I S T O RY
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13
TRANSPORT
IN A STRATEGIC COUNTRY FOR ACCIONA: BRAZIL. IN ITS FIRST CITY BY POPULATION
AND ECONOMY: SAO PAULO. AND IN THE MAIN STATE DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVE:
TRANSPORT. THE METRO LINE 6 EXTENSION, THE ORANGE LINE.
D
to alleviate this lack,” explains the Institute of
Foreign Trade (ICEX).
These are currently underway. Last year, as part
of its new liberal economic agenda, the central
administration launched an Investment Part-
nership Program (IPP) worth $29-billion in
collaboration with the private sector. In total,
59 developments in the transport and logistics
sector: 17 initiatives of airport concessions (1
billion dollars), 22 port proposals (1 billion dol-
lars), 8 projects in land transport (13 billion)
and 12 of a railway area that is allotted the larg-
est amount, 14.5 billion.
ECONOMIC MOTOR
Infrastructure is vital for not only macro-, but
also micro-economic and social take-oﬀ; in fact
the UN considers that achieving the Sustaina-
ble Development Goals depends on more than
70% of it. With the investment of the PPI, Brazil
wants to enter the club of locomotives beyond
the regional leadership. And also in times of
crisis. The government has created a specific
development program 2020-2022, under the
umbrella of the Ministry of Infrastructure, to
attract investment and generate employment
for post-pandemic recovery.
In this country whose potential is equal to its
size, ACCIONA is expanding its presence with
a milestone in its entire business history: the
construction and operation of Line 6 of the
Sao Paulo Subway, the Orange Line, a contract
awarded to the company by the Sao Paulo State
Government after a long period of negotiations.
This is the largest infrastructure project in Latin
America developed under the public-private
partnership model.
Some have first-world services, while others
remain in the waiting line. For example, 17%
of Brazilians still do not have access to treated
water and 38% of drinking water is lost in the
supply network.
The same can be said of transport. “In this
aspect, Brazilian infrastructure suffers from
insufficient investment and poor maintenance,
so the government has made a priority of
boosting its development through federal pro-
grams that rely on private capital investment
EVELOPMENT RAINS
ON BRAZIL IN
DIFFERENT WAYS,
EACH CITY IS A
SMALL UNIVERSE.
by Miguel Ángel García Vega

14
ODITVERE CAETINCVES OR
Expansion with 15.3 kilometers
of railroad tracks, 15 stations,
18 wells, 318 escalators and 82
elevators.
It will be covered by 22 trains
with six carriages and 1,620
passengers simultaneously.
It will use 980,000 cubic
meters of concrete, 162,000
million cubic meters of
flooring and 77,000 tons of
metal structure.
It will transport 633,000
passengers per day and
generate 9,000 direct and
indirect jobs.
The biggest technical
challenges: the deepest station
will be 69 meters away,
surpassing the current record
of 40 meters, on Line 5-Lila.
And it will dig with tunneling
machines different types of
soils (they will remove 3.2
million cubic meters of soil) and
rocks (1 million cubic meters).
MAGNITUDE
OF THE
ORANGE LINE
“Furthermore, it is also the largest infrastruc-
ture contract in our history. It is valued at 2.3
billion euros and will serve 633,000 passen-
gers per day. Not only does it promote mobili-
ty, but also sustainability and social advance-
ment; it is a project that is very much desired
by the population,” reflects André De Ange-
lo, Director of the Infrastructure Division of
ACCIONA in Brazil.
Relationship between space and time: speed. Its
construction will take about five years (record
time, it was stopped by a previous partner since
2016 and will execute 95% of the initial project)
and the construction and operation contract
will be extended for 19 more years. Just looking
at the clock, it will reduce a journey that now
requires 90 minutes to just 23.
The current Line
6 of the Sao
Paulo Subway will
be expanded to
connect the center
with the periphery
and to decongest
surface traffic in
one of the densest
cities in Brazil.

15
“The project opens the way for more
infrastructure concessions and validates our
potential to operate in the transport and logistics,
water and renewable energy generation sectors
in the country,” explains André De Angelo,
director of ACCIONA’s Infrastructure division in
Brazil. “The alliance between private companies
and the Government is fundamental for projects
that improve the quality of life to take off. Brazil
has other similar alliances in the construction and
operation of subways and passenger trains, and
this is a model that must endure.”
LAND, WATER
AND ENERGY SUPPLY
It will bring ﬂuidity to this extensive and at the
same time variegated urban cartography of Sao
Paulo, massive with 11 million inhabitants in
the city and 20 million in the metropolitan area.
The suburban line will connect the center with
outlying neighborhoods such as Perdizes,
Sumare, Pompeia, Freguesia do O and Brasilan-
dia, and with some of the main university fac-
ulties. It will link what is now scattered, while
helping to decongest and decontaminate sur-
face transport.
QUALITY OF LIFE
The citizens of Sao Paulo will not look at how
the opportunity for a better quality of life pass-
es them by. They will have within their reach a
safe, cheap, fast, clean public transport, which
will favor local economic activity and the intercon-
nection of urban sectors that were previously poor-
ly connected. The project implements the ACCIONA
model in the management of social beneﬁts, from the
impact of gender in aspects such as security, training
and employment to the alliance with local startups
specialized in sustainable mobility.
At least as far as the transport engine is concerned,
Brazil wants to apply the legend of its coat of arms:
Order and Progress.
TRANSPORT

16
INT ELLIGEN T
(PLA NE T)
EDUCAT IO N
PROJECTS WITH THE
PRIORITY OF POSITIVE
SOCIAL IMPACT ON
THE LOCAL ECONOMY,
BIODIVERSITY,
EQUALITY, HUMAN
DEVELOPMENT,
EMPLOYMENT… TRAINING
IS THE INVESTMENT ON
WHICH EVERYTHING
ELSE IS BUILT.
by Juan Pablo Zurdo
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17
EDUCATION
According to the World Bank Group, 62% of a
country’s total wealth comes from its human capital.
Looking at 2014 figures, it is reasonable to say that this
percentage grows higher alongside technical qualifi-
cations as a competitive factor. Another fact from the
WBG: each additional year of schooling can increase
your future salary by 10%.
That significance is even more decisive in times of tech-
nological, economic and social upheaval, when training
and awareness function as communicating vessels in a
network. Awareness is a key factor in understanding
the need for the paradigm shift towards sustainable
development, and professional knowledge is vital for
knowing how to carry it out.
This is how it is applied in ACCIONA projects.
INOT WHAT YOU’VE
II, IT’S WHAT YOU
IIW. BECAUSE WHAT
IIYOU BUILD COMES
FROM WHAT YOU
KNOW, AT LEAST IN
THE BUSINESS WORLD.

18
EDUCATION
AUSTRALIA
Initiative. A 300,000 Australian dollar invest-
ment in the Asia Pacific Renewable Energy
Tech-Transition Centre (APRETC), at Federation
University, over the next decade to train 10,000
students, the industry’s talent pool, especially in
the State of Victoria.
Objective. “Supporting the next generation of tal-
ent and opening doors for others to join this indus-
try is critical,” explains Brett Wickham, Managing
Director of the Energy Australia business line.
CANADA
Initiative. 35,000 Canadian dollars’ worth of
university scholarships for careers related to
trade and construction (one of the country’s
great economic drivers) in which the demand for
professionals is on the rise with the retirement of
previous generations.
Who and where. Awarded by Peace River Hydro
Partners (a joint venture between ACCIONA and
Samsung C&T), which is building the Site C mega-
dam in British Columbia. The previous edition
focused on training for women (the current one has
been extended to include men) inspired by profiles
like that of engineer Natasha Smilovic, Structural
Superintendent at Site C, or Raquel García, Director
of Construction on the project, as two examples
of what female students can achieve in the sector.
CHILE
Initiative. Environmental education workshops
to tell children and teenagers about the per-
sonal, economic and environmental benefits of
renewable energy.
Where. In schools near the San Gabriel wind farm
(La Araucania) and the El Romero Solar photovol-
taic park (Atacama).
Beneficiaries. In 2019, more than 2,300 students
took part in the workshops, which are comple-
mented by other initiatives like the Productive
Development programs for livestock farmers and
other trades.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Initiative. University scholarships — award-
ed since 2009 following a candidate selection
process — for careers related to sustainability
Left, an
ACCIONA
renewable
energy
educational
session in
Australia.
Right,
sustainability
training for
women in
Anaburu, India.

19
Colombia. Environmental education workshops for
people living in the area around the Bello wastewater
treatment plant, which will allow the Medellin River and
its tributary streams to be cleaned up.
Ecuador. Social and educational training associated
with the drinking water treatment project in Esmeral-
das and school workshops on environmental practices
in Guayaquil.
India.Reading and mathematics training for children aged
6 and 7. Some 1,300 have taken part in the area around
the Bannur wind farm.
Nicaragua. Environmental education in primary and
secondary schools in connection with drinking water
treatment plants in the cities of Rivas and Rama.
Panama. Training in water culture associated with the
Howard drinking water treatment plant.
Paraguay. Environmental training for communities based
near the integrated sanitation project for the Asuncion
bay and metropolitan area.
Peru.Trainingcommunityleaders,familiesandschoolchil-
dreninwater,wasteandsanitarymanagement,including
diseaseprevention.LinkedtothePachacutecdrinking
waterandsewerageprojectintheVentanilladistrict.
EDUCATIONAL WORLD MAP
According
to the UN,
education will
be the key
factor in the
training and
awareness
shift that
will enable
economic
transition.
and renewable energy, including engineering,
physics, chemistry and business administra-
tion. Training to satisfy the country’s increas-
ing demand for innovative and well-qualified
professionals.
Where. In states with projects like the Tatanka
(North Dakota), Red Hills (Oklahoma), Ecogrove
(Illinois) and San Roman (Texas) wind farms.
MEXICO
Initiative. Sustainability classroom sessions in
primary and secondary schools, with more than
10,000 participants so far. The sessions include
teacher training, practical applications such as
plastics recycling, and digital platforms so they
can spread their knowledge to other communities.
Training. In renewable energy, water care and
conservation, sustainable cities and waste man-
agement. A collaboration between the Nation-
al Pedagogic University and the Inter-American
University for Development.
Where. Oaxaca, Sonora and Tamaulipas, in the
communities near the wind and photovoltaic
parks of Oaxacas and Eurus, Puerto Libertad and
El Cortijo.
SOUTH AFRICA
Initiative. Projects associated with the Gouda
and Sishen wind farms. For example, the Dele-
trea (Spell) program, which trains teachers, boys
and especially girls; scholarships in rural areas;
sustainability courses in schools and the Kinder-
kinetics project for children with developmental
problems and low achievement.
Business fabric. Initiatives such as Partners
for Possibilities, where business leaders train
school principals to improve educational per-
formance; local entrepreneurship for black
people, indigenous people, youth and women;
and the Labit Program, which fosters an entre-
preneurial culture in communities and includes
providing funding and advice for the most
promising microenterprises.
Beneﬁciaries. Some 15,000 people.

20
INTERVIEW
20
by Juan Pablo Zurdo photos Jacobo Medrano
José Gabriel Martín Fernández
Director of acciona.org foundation
“
WE DEVELOP
PROJECTS
ADAPTED TO
LOCAL CONTEXT
AND CULTURE
”
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2121
José Gabriel
Martín joined
ACCIONA’s R&D
and Strategic
Analysis
Department in
2007.

22
IWhen José Gabriel Martín Fernández did the Quetzal Route at the age
of 16, in a way he was foreseeing his professional adventure. At the
time that he began to collaborate with the acciona.org foundation,
it consisted of only five people. Now, eight years later, we’re talking
about a much bigger team, global and local, capable of bringing elec-
tricity, water and sanitation to communities that the market has for-
gotten. A model in the outer reaches of welfare, of aid left in the hands
of third parties, of projects with a title but without any kind of conti-
nuity and eventually sidelined. This model is sustainable in time and
space, cautious but firm, with benefits assured by the obligations taken
on. What it builds is based on respect for the culture of each commu-
nity and the trust that only local professionals can achieve. It offers the
same services as ACCIONA, but goes where even ACCIONA cannot.
What is unique about acciona.org?
It has a feature that’s unusual in corporate foundations, not just
environmental and social sustainability, but economic and techni-
cal sustainability as well. Our approach isn’t project-oriented, it’s
more about a lasting service. With a welfare model we could be in
more places, but in a much weaker way. We focus on what we know
N’ T WELFARE, AND IT
IIT DO-GOODING, IT’S
IIEFFECTIVE SERVICE
IIH RIGHTS AND
IIIGATIONS BASED ON
IITRUST OF LOCAL
IIMMUNITIES.
II
how to do as a company, in terms of energy, water
and sanitation, and so we complement the com-
pany, we can support it, we can mediate in those
environments. We’re involved from start to fin-
ish, comprehensively, from identifying the need
and designing the solution through to opera-
tion. We don’t do it alone, we rely on ACCIONA’s
knowledge, resources and volunteers, and on
partnerships with foundations, NGOs, univer-
sities, cooperation agencies, governments and
the communities themselves. All this allows our
projects not to die.
How has the foundation evolved?
Now we’re more capable, more versatile. We no
longer only work in Cajamarca [Peru], where
there’s a favorable regulatory framework, we’re
now in the Amazon, Mexico, Panama, Ethiopia
and reaching out to other countries. In addition
to electricity, we now provide access to drink-
ing water and sanitation, which is also in severe
shortage in the urban areas of more developed
countries. In other words, nowadays we can go
wherever we are needed, as part of our mission
of working with ACCIONA in achieving the 2030
Agenda, but still retaining our independence.
Is achieving local trust the key factor?
Building from grass roots upwards is essential.
Otherwise, we’d land like aliens, bringing solu-
tions and technologies not adapted to the real con-
text. We try to avoid white elephants because our
previous perception isn’t always correct, it has to
be tested. For example, we may think the prob-
lem is water quality, its impact on health, but the
community doesn’t see it that way, they aren’t
convinced about paying for a service that they can
get for free, their top priority is quantity and conti-
nuity of supply. In Oaxaca alone, we work with 11
ethnic groups with their own languages and cus-
toms. This makes it crucial to have local profes-
sionals who understand that context, who do the
door-to-door work to build trust, to get the bravest
on board and demonstrate that the project works,

23
60,000
264
14,120
people
benefited
electricity
access
systems
that benefit
as many
families
access systems
to water,
sanitation and
kitchens that
benefit 137
families
Chemical Engineer
from the University
of Salamanca,
Master in Renewable
Energy and the
Energy Sector
and MBA from the
School of Industrial
Organization
(Madrid).

24
INTERVIEW
that we deliver. We have to understand them so
they understand us. It serves as an added value, a
process that needs patience and a lot of time.
So what do you learn?
That you have to be very, very respectful. You
can’t take anything for granted, not even because
you think you’re there to do good. You have to
adapt, not them, even though there are behaviors
we don’t share. We can gradually achieve some
sort of change, such as the presence of women,
but with a lot of care. That contact is a wake-up
call in terms of human and professional reality.
You learn to come up with innovative solutions
in complicated scenarios and with very limit-
ed means. Watch out, because that gap between
wealth and poverty is opening up right now next
to where we are in Madrid, but over there it is
extreme and widespread.
What do ACCIONA volunteers contribute to and
what do they receive?
I think we improve each other. It would be wrong
for me to speak for them, but they tell us that it’s a
very rewarding experience. Very demanding too,
it can be physically and emotionally tough, it isn’t
a vacation or a photo opportunity. I believe they
learn to maintain a level of excellence in a context
opposed to the everyday one, they see the social
benefit of their work and it increases their pride in
belonging. They give us some excellent suggestions
for improving the service, including construc-
tive criticism. We can’t take everyone, only 20 a
year, because it isn’t easy, we have to take care of
them and support them, but we receive many more
applications, more than a hundred last year.
What about this year, in the pandemic, how have
they dealt with it?
Firstly, by adopting the corporate safety protocols
to protect our people, and then by applying that
flexibility I referred to earlier. We aren’t a medical
organization, we don’t have open access to many
areas, so by using the phone and mobilizing the
local network we’ve managed to adapt how we
handle things so we can guarantee the service.
For example, being able to wash hands with clean
water has been a priority so as not to aggravate
the consequences of the pandemic.
Where is acciona.org going?
We’ll be more useful for local communities and for
ACCIONA, generating more positive social impact
around the company’s projects, with supply mod-
els that make the foundation self-sufficient in each
country. We’ll be working on the ability to adapt
that I mentioned, but on a larger scale. Plus, we’re
goingtoconsolidatethewaterandsanitationservice
to bring it up to the level of the electricity supply.
Thisisn’ttrivial;energyissimpler,butwaterismore
regulated, it’s more complex, it’s a human right.
The place with an
acciona.org presence
that made the deepest
impression on you...
Vencedores de Zapote,
in the Napo river basin,
Peruvian Amazon.
Magical, a paradise, but
with living conditions
that put you in your place.
A hobby without which
life doesn’t make sense...
I have a problem, I like
too many sports: cycling,
tennis, sailing, skiing,
paddle tennis, golf. Jack
of all trades, master of
none.
A book and a song...
The Old Man Who
Read Love Stories, by
Luis Sepúlveda. And a
complete live album,
Alchemy, by Dire Straits.
Historical figure...
The great navigators
for their courage,
entrepreneurship,
perseverance. For
example, Juan Sebastián
Elcano.
That other profession...
I almost studied
architecture, but
nowadays I’d opt for
something connected
with the sea.
The social achievement
you’d sign up to...
Full access to energy,
but renewable. And why
not, fulfilling the 2030
Agenda in terms of
timescale and form.
MORE PERSONAL

25
ON-SITE LOCAL
REPRESENTATIVES
ON EACH PROJECT
As well as the positive
impact on the lives of Luz en
Casa users, we’ve achieved
milestones like an official
tariff for home photovoltaic
systems, the consequent
access to social subsidies,
the first rural electricity con-
cession with photovoltaics.
Respect for diverse cultures
creates a bond of trust and
credibility. Finding out about
a reality in my own country,
one that we’re often una-
ware of, being part of its
transformation, living with
communities or meeting
older people who thought
they would never have
power in their homes, has
allowed me to grow above
all as a human being. I value
every life lesson received.
JÉSSICA OLIVARES
Peru
Wehavethespiritofstarting
andconsolidatingsomething
new,adiﬀerentenergythat
allowsustoturnproblems
around.We’relearning,collect-
ingmuchneededandvaluable
information.Eachplacehas
itspeculiaritiesandwe’reat
thestageoflookingforthem,
analyzingthemandadapting
totheChileanidiosyncrasy.
Todaytheworldislikeacater-
pillar,constrictedinitscocoon,
veryuncomfortableandwith
suddenandimprecisemove-
mentsbecauseofhowwe’ve
mistreatedit.Weeachhave
theobligationtodothebest
wecantohelpthiscaterpillar
completeitsmetamorphosis
andbecomeabutterﬂy.
RODRIGO SOTO
Chile
We continue growing, a little
more each year. The commu-
nities react positively to the
Luz en Casa program, they
feel they’re being heard and
are very happy to accept their
remuneration in exchange
for the photovoltaic system,
the assistance center and
the maintenance service.
They used to have portable
lamps for lighting, which is
lower quality and much more
expensive. So they’ve taken
it on themselves to promote
the program to their rela-
tives and other neighboring
communities. All the work is
worth it when you see the
gratitude on the faces of
men, women and children.
ALIBETH DE GRACIA
Panama
We provide access to
essential electricity, water,
sanitation and cooking
services through afforda-
ble eco-technologies and
we’ve been honored by the
European Environmental
Awards, the most pres-
tigious awards in the field
of sustainable business
development in Spain.
Rural areas are home to
the majority of the plan-
et’s poor, who lack basic
services and are most vul-
nerable. As a person and as
a professional it causes me
to feel more committed, it
makes me more productive
and secure. These people’s
happiness makes us better
people.
ENRIQUE TOLEDO
Mexico

GA
TES26
26-35_ACCIONA_Acceso al agua_ENG.indd 2626-35_ACCIONA_Acceso al agua_ENG.indd 26 3/12/20 15:413/12/20 15:41

S 27
IF THE PLANET IS ALREADY THIRSTY AND
INUNDATED BY FLOODS, WHAT’S GOING TO
HAPPEN IN THREE DECADES WHEN POPULATION
AND DEMAND INCREASE? OPTING RIGHT NOW FOR
AWARENESS, LOGICAL THOUGHT, TECHNOLOGY,
MANAGEMENT, INVESTMENT AND LEGISLATION CAN
PREVENT THINGS FROM GETTING WORSE.
THE YET UNBORN GENERATION CAN SAY SDG 6
ON THE RIGHT TO WATER IS “DONE”.
by Miguel Ángel García VegaO
PEN FOR WATER

28
Llenge can be tackled better. Many pieces need to be
put together. We need regulation to transfer money
and we need stable river banks. “An objective fact:
there is a cash flow surplus in the world financial
system,” points out Manuel Navarro, Director of
the Water Cycle at ACCIONA.
“Transforming this cash flow into water infra-
structure mainly requires legal certainty, which
lies in the power of the States. Plus, funding for
public or private operators will be faster, more
abundant and cheaper if greater legislative cer-
tainty is given to investors. Most of these infra-
structure are executed by the private sector,
which needs a very clear delimitation of the risks
it takes on,” adds Navarro.
ESSENTIAL SERVICE
The water industry is estimated to be worth 600
billion dollars and can grow between 4% and 6%
annually. To put it into perspective, the entire
pharmaceutical sector stands at around 700 bil-
lion. And by 2025, water could already exceed
one trillion dollars. Huge numbers for an even
bigger challenge.
However, money is just another tributary,
important but just another. What’s fundamental
is the river of people. “Water and sanitation have
been, are and always will be essential services
for the health and welfare of the entire popula-
tion”, Navarro observes.
You have to read the earth. “It rains gently and
without stopping, it rains reluctantly but with
infinite patience, like all life, and the line of the
mountain has long been erased.” That Spain of
constant drizzle that Camilo José Cela described
in Mazurka for Two Dead Men is also being erased,
et’s put it down in writing. Like at school. Sub-
ject, verb and predicate. “25% of the population
could run out of water.” The UN states it. The New
York Times writes it. The world feels it.
4,000 million people suffer from water short-
age at least one month a year. About 700 million
may be displaced by the lack of this proverbi-
al liquid by 2030. And in the next three dec-
ades, population growth on this blue planet will
demand between 20% and 30% more of that
combination of two molecules of hydrogen and
one oxygen. UN data.
We inhabit an imbalance, although water has been
essential for existence from the very first second
of time. And the headlines keep piling up. “25%
of countries are at risk of their ecological system
collapsing” (The Guardian). “Coping with water
scarcity requires resilient farms” (Forbes).
The UN has set clean water and sanitation as the
6th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) for 2030.
Once the problem has been identified on a planet
where only 0.25% is drinkable, this immense chal-
LLLLLLLLLLLLLL
WATER

29

WATER
30

31
has a negative impact on their conservation,”
comments Jesús Gamero, an environmental
analyst at the Alternativas Foundation. Behind
this lies a double demographic challenge: the
depopulation of the rural world and the interior
compared to high density coastal areas with a
growing water consumption.
Another axiom: the tendency to reduce the
cultivated area per capita, when we should be
increasing global calorie production by 69% by
2050, according to the IMDEA Water Institute.
This puts further pressure on water resources
because increased productivity is crucial for get-
ting out of this difficult situation: less land, more
population, more need to produce food. A for-
mula that the planet has not yet solved.
ALL INTERCONNECTED
The first law of ecology teaches that “everything
is connected to everything else.” Either there’s
balance or what will remain when there’s noth-
ing left? We have a growing awareness of climate
change, but we need very good management to
tackle scarcity. It is possible to be more intelli-
gent in the way we use water resources in rivers
or reservoirs and underground water, the great
forgotten supply.
This certainty can’t be understood without
innovation “and that must be the attitude tak-
en going forward,” Navarro emphasizes. “In our
company it’s the result of experience, analysis
and improvement of every process, method,
equipment, technology. Implementing many
small changes in everyday activities makes us a
little more competitive every day.”
This technique can minimize a deep-seat-
ed problem, that of water loss from mains and
pipes. It addresses and cleans liquid from res-
ervoirs and allows for crops that consume less
and that make greater geographical and human
sense. Because in order to solve access to water
and its sanitation, we must listen to criticism
from the countryside.
We need a new taxonomy. A different way of nam-
ing things. Pedro Arrojo, UN Special Rapporteur
on the Human Rights to Safe Drinking Water and
WATER
and the consequences of global warming are
affecting 32 million of the country’s 47 million
inhabitants.
Some drainage basins are already experienc-
ing reductions of between 15% and 40%, and
droughts are forecast to become more frequent as
the century progresses. In the Segura river basin,
the effects of the climate crisis are already being
manifested as a 44% drop in average net contri-
butions at the river head.
Desertification is gaining ground along with
aridity. “We need people who work and act on
the ground. Our fields, mountains and forests
have been looked after and reshaped for centu-
ries, their abandonment involves a significant
loss of environmental and agricultural assets and
EVEN RAINY SPAIN
IS DRYING OUT.
TODAY 32 MILLION
OF THE COUNTRY’S
47 MILLION
INHABITANTS LIVE
IN AREAS THAT MAY
SUFFER FROM WATER
SHORTAGE
Three out of
ten people lack
access to safe
drinking water
and six out of
ten don’t have
access to safe
sanitation
facilities.

32
AGUA
Sanitation, speaks of “life water” (an essential
right, with no pretext); “citizen water” (citizens’
access and payment based on their spending);
“economy water” (needed to make, for example,
a car, and that must be paid at the precise cost);
and “crime water” (such as that used for oil and
gas fracking). From rights... to abuse.
WE HAVE SOLUTIONS
We live in the age of big data and artificial intel-
ligence. In 2018, Cape Town came close to Day 0.
The water had run out. But they brought in water
saving systems and technological measures and
they solved the shortage. “New technologies will
allow us to interact with infrastructure as if they
were an extension of our body. This era imposes
the digitization of water facilities such as waste
water treatment plants, drinking water treatment
plants, desalination plants and managed supply
and sanitation networks that are increasingly
efficient for more and more millions of people.”
underlines the ACCIONA executive.
We have new methods like direct reuse to con-
nect waste water treatment with drinking water
treatment without intermediaries. ACCIONA
leads the way in this technology, which elimi-
nates the intermediate step of the environment,
turning what’s known as the integrated water
cycle into a closed circuit. It’s the origin of the
concept of a circular economy.
DIGITAL MANAGEMENT
WILL ALLOW
INFRASTRUCTURE
EFFICIENCY TO BE
SCALED UP
There’s also desalination by osmosis technology,
mature, sustainable, clean, without emissions
and powered by renewable energy sources. Its
waste products, treated correctly, have no effect
on marine flora and fauna.
Are we still in time? We are talking about the right
of every human being to an essential service and
the obligation to provide as much economic sup-
port as possible. Public administrations should be
ensuring compliance and, although their targets
are often delayed, we shouldn’t let this discourage
us. We have the SDGs and a growing commitment
from States and citizens alike. But we shouldn’t
slip into complacency, we all need to comply,
every single one of us according to our social posi-
tion and responsibility,” Navarro points out.
So the outline of the mountain can continue to be
erased. So the earth doesn’t burn underfoot.
According to the
UN, 70% of all
water extracted
from rivers, lakes
and aquifers is
used for irrigation.

33
WATER
THE 5
CHALLENGES
FACING
PLANET H2
O
• Effectiveness of SDG 6. With
specific, transparent and open
legislation that provides legal
certainty to stimulate new cost-
efficient projects, and on time,
without eternal delays.
• Targeted approach given the
unstoppable growth of present
and future cities: the regulation
of urban water to ensure quality
and sustainable price.
• Money. Fund investment for
expanding and improving water
supply infrastructure, as without
it no plans can be made now
for infrastructure that will be
operating during the next 50
years. The good news: many
of the water and sanitation
projects could be self-financing
so as not to divert public funding
from sectors such as health or
education; these projects can
also make a very positive impact
on the local economy.
• Ensure that SDG 6 is good
business for everyone, States,
water companies, the population
and the planet. How? By
recouping investment and
operating costs to guarantee
service quality, by measuring
that quality and bringing in tariffs
based on customer use, income
and consumption.
• A cross-subsidy system for
tariffs and public subsidies for
the lowest incomes, to allow
sustainable economic and
environmental expenditure for
every family.

34
AGUA
Alexander Pfaff — Professor of Environmental Sciences
at the Stanford School of Public Policy, Duke University,
USA — is one of the most transparent voices on planet H2
O.
“Nature has suffered enormous degradation and the cost is
very high.” Species have been lost, resources have been lost.
This tithe is paid by the boatman on the Styx when there are
droughts, but also floods. “If water simply moves away from
productive agricultural areas or drainage basins that supply
major cities, it can cause huge disruption.” he warns.
What to do? Giving up is like signing up to extinction. “We
need to believe in the best possible science and continue
to invest so we improve our scientific understanding. We
humans must work in coordination.” In two ways: “Match
demand to natural supplies!” “And take into account cities
where rising ocean levels will turn them into stranded assets.”
This means it’s essential to know “which drainage basins will
be able to supply drinking water as the climate changes.”
We need it to rain, but we can’t keep our heads in the clouds.
BELIEVE INTHE
BEST POSSIBLE SCIENCE
The company is a spe-
cialist in the manage-
ment and treatment of
the entire water cycle,
with more than 500
projects – desalination
plants, water treat-
ment plants, sewage
treatment plants and
supply and sanitation
networks – across
more than 30 countries
on five continents. It’s
one of the few compa-
nies in the sector that
operates in an integrat-
ed and global way.
More than 90 million
people benefit from its
water infrastructure.
It has received interna-
tional awards for Best
Desalinating Com-
pany and Best Water
Company.
Innovation in infra-
structure, manage-
ment and treatment
for scaling up capacity
and efficiency: from
digitization to reverse
osmosis or direct
reuse that purifies and
makes water drinkable
by closing out the
integrated cycle.
ACCIONA, INTEGRATED
WATER CYCLE MANAGEMENT

35
ANDREW J. WHELTON
PROFESSOR OF CIVIL, ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECOLOGICAL ENGINEERING AT PURDUE UNIVERSITY (USA)
“Companies don’t exist without water”
Is the pandemic health crisis
hiding the problem of scarcity?
The pandemic has revealed
that people living without clean
drinking water are suffering
hugely. Because, for example,
it’s essential for washing your
hands. People who never had
enough water for cooking or for
other tasks now need to use it
for personal hygiene. The crisis
has brought to light the critical
problem of shortage across the
world.
Is there a direct connection
between water scarcity and
coronavirus?
Yes. In the United States, as in
many European countries, if a
household can’t afford to pay the
water bill, the supply is cut off.
And now the pandemic comes
along. These families can’t pro-
tect themselves from the virus
because they don’t have water
to wash with. There is a move
to ban water supply companies
from behaving like this during the
health crisis. Because the social
consequences are severe.
As an engineer, what technolo-
gies can you suggest to remedy
these shortages?
Extracting underground water
usually needs a large amount of
energy and the quality is often
not the best. Desalination can
be used when water lacks the
necessary quality and some
experiments, such as obtaining
water from the air, are starting to
attract more interest.
If water infrastructure did have
that kind of quality...
In many countries on the planet
they are very, very old. Ours
in the United States were built
before World War II, and some are
literally falling apart. Loss from
leakages stands at between 20%
and 30%, so people pay for water
that doesn’t get to them.
Are wealthy countries suffi-
ciently aware of the future of
access to water in their nations
and in the rest of the world?
There’s a lot of discussion going
on in developed nations. But
I don’t know of any that have
adopted an ambitious nationwide
plan to really tackle the challenge
of scarcity, which affects not
just people but businesses too.
Because without water there can
be no companies.
Will access to good quality water
and sanitation be one of the
greatest challenges for a human-
ity that’s still growing and likely
to carry on in the future?
Megacities are attracting more
and more inhabitants. These
kinds of urban spaces are ex-
pected to get even bigger. They’ll
need more water and more
infrastructure to transport it. The
key issue is to ascertain what
our needs are and what kind of
technology we can put in place to
create a sustainable system.
From what you’ve described, it
looks like we run the risk that
we’ll eventually have to fetch
water from the Moon...
27 astronauts have graduated
from Purdue University. Several
academics there are working on
lunar projects. Water scarcity is a
problem on Earth and I’m sure it is
on other planets as well.
HE’S ONE OF THE GREAT WATER
THINKERS. HE HAS STUDIED
THE EFFECT OF WATER
SHORTAGE ON THE TERRIBLE
CALIFORNIAN WILDFIRES, NOW
JOINED BY THE PANDEMIC,
RUSTING INFRASTRUCTURE
AND MEGACITY THIRST. THE
SOLUTIONS: TECHNOLOGY,
GOVERNMENT COMMITMENT,
CITIZEN DILIGENCE.
WATER

36
A RECRUITMENT OFFICE
IN THE SUN. A JOB THAT
DOESN’T GET BLOWN
AWAY. RENEWABLE
ENERGIES HELP TO
COMBAT THE DRAMA OF
UNEMPLOYMENT. THEY ARE
ABOUT TO MULTIPLY THEIR
CAPACITY TO GENERATE
QUALITY EMPLOYMENT,
BOTH DIRECTLY AND
INDIRECTLY.
THE SOURCE
OF RENEWABLE
EMPLOYMENT
36
36-41_ACCIONA_Empleabilidad_ENG.indd 3636-41_ACCIONA_Empleabilidad_ENG.indd 36 3/12/20 15:593/12/20 15:59

by Denisse Cepeda
37

T
o contribute to decarbonization, naturally. To
encourage the transition to a sustainable econo-
my, as well. Plus for the factor that underpins the
social welfare of an entire planet:employment.
They are not a panacea, but renewable energies
are once again shining a light on the labor mar-
ket thanks to the power of solar and wind on
land and at sea.
In the midst of a perfect storm with the name of
a virus, to which is added the short- and medi-
um-term projection of sectorial reconversions
and automation, the sector is today an engine
of contracts and green GDP. Above all, thanks
to the lower price of clean sources and the pub-
lic-private partnership in pursuit of the decar-
bonization objectives for 2050.
UPWARD TREND
Two reports note this positive trend that is not
yet flying, but is just about to take off.
In Spain, the Association of Renewable Ener-
gy Companies (APPA) recorded 95,087 jobs in
2019, 16.9% more than the previous year. Wind,
photovoltaic and biofuels are responsible for this
growth. The sector is still far from its 2011 peak
(127,548 employees), but the employers estimate
between 130,000 and 200,000 by 2030.
More optimistically, the National Integrated
Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC), the road
map for companies and investors, forecasts up
to 348,000.
Furthermore, the International Renewable Energy
Agency (Irena) projects a global boom. Today they
generate 11.5 million jobs, with the one that is
growing the most, solar photovoltaic, at the head
(33%, 3.8 million), followed by biofuels (2.5 mil-
lion) and wind power (1.2). However, they could
create 5.5 million jobs in the next three years and
30 million in a decade if the world accelerates its
energy transition plans.
More benefit than harm is expected in this process
of global energy reconversion. The International
Labor Organization (ILO) estimates the creation
of four jobs for every one destroyed in the most
heavily polluting industries such as coal or oil.
C O M I N G A L O N G
T O L E N D A H A N D
W H E N T H E Y A R E
M O S T N E E D E D ,
J U S T A S M O R E
J O B S A R E B E I N G
S W E P T A W AY B Y
T H E P E R F E C T
S T O R M .
EMPLOYMENT
38

The opportunity
to use renewable
energy as an
economic engine
depends on
the capacity
of vocational
and university
training available
to meet the
demand for jobs.
39

40
ODITVERE CAETINCVES OR
Environmental sustainability with employment.
Companies that abandon fossil fuels opt for
recycling or relocating talent to photovoltaic
and wind farms, in line with the principles of
just transition promoted by the EU.
This time the industrial fabric of renewable
energies is consolidated; it is an attractive busi-
ness, which promises, unlike what happened in
the crisis of 2008, when Spanish companies had
to go abroad to mitigate the cuts in premiums
and the halt in activity.
IN THE LONG TERM
The boost to GDP and employment, although the
urgent objective, cannot be separated from its
social and environmental benefits in the medi-
um and long term. “They are profitable because
of their technological development, because of
the need for energy and the fight against climate
change, and they are basic as a tool for avoiding
SUSTAINABLE
GROWTH CURVE
INVESTMENT IN
RENEWABLE ENERGIES
CREATES ALMOST THREE
TIMES MORE JOBS THAN
FOSSIL SOURCES
In 2012, renewable
energies (hydro, solar,
wind, bioenergy, etc.)
generated 7.28 million
jobs worldwide. 11
million in 2018 and last
year, 11.5.
Most are in Asia, 63%,
and solar photovoltaic
leads the generation of
global employment: 33%.
The investment of $
1 million in renewable
energies creates 7.49
jobs, compared to 2.65
with only fossil fuels.
Decentralized renewa-
ble energy sources help
create jobs outside the
large economic circuits,
in activities such as
agricultural product
processing, local com-
merce and health.
Job training will be key
to boosting the energy
transition. More specific
plans, more profes-
sional training, more
qualified teachers and
more communication
technologies applied to
learning are needed.
Teamwork,
global mobility
and adaptability:
qualities of the
renewable energy
job profile.

41
emissions, saving water, conserving biodiversity
and preventing fires, while ensuring the social
impact of an expanding employment that in part
contributes to rural development,” concludes
Mikel Ortiz de Latierro, Director of Prevention,
Sustainability, Environment and Quality of the
Energy area in ACCIONA.
“The decarbonization of the economy implies a
change of paradigm in the energy system with
profound transformations in many sectors. It
involves the way energy is generated, distrib-
uted and used, with digitalization, massive
data management or innovation in new forms
of energy production, storage and application.
This implies a high demand for professionals
of very different levels, but with a high degree
of specialization and qualification,” explains
Maite Ecay, Human Resources Director of the
ACCIONA Energy Division.
QUALIFIED PROFILE
What type of demand? Above all, technical pro-
files, hence the quality of the jobs generated by
the sector: industrial engineers, mathematicians,
physical science experts, staff with language skills
and the ability to move internationally.
“We develop rotation plans by academic special-
ization in order to offer highly qualified profes-
sionals, which is essential. We also provide train-
ing and follow-up to employees in international
projects so that they can reach the appropriate
specialization in the short term,” says Ecay. The
company also favors territorial and functional
mobility from within: “The expansion of renew-
able energy is played on a global scale and com-
panies with sufficient resilience and adaptability
are in the best conditions to compete.”
In order for the best forecasts to be fulfilled, cer-
tain challenges must be faced. “To improve the
coordination between the academic and forma-
tive environment, the technological centers and
the companies, and also to promote the regula-
tion and the stimuli of the public powers for the
harmony of all the agents involved in the ener-
getic transition,” concludes the directive.
EMPLOYMENT
ACCIONA will contribute directly to the generation of
employment with an investment of 4 billion euros over
the next five years in renewable energies.
Its bandwagon effect is the nemesis of the bandwagon
effect of the crisis. “A new business revalues resources
that were previously unused and often has reper-
cussions in disadvantaged areas,” says Mikel Ortiz de
Latierro, Director of Prevention, Sustainability, Environ-
ment and Quality of the Energy area.
They can serve as one of the main investments to com-
bat rural depopulation: “Not only do they generate qual-
ity employment, they also have an impact on diversity
and inclusion,” defends the manager.
The company has implemented its own system of Social
Impact Management (GIS) in line with the Sustainable
Development Goals. However, in addition to this macro
fit, it adapts to the micro reality of the socio-cultural
context that surrounds each facility.
It calculates the direct, indirect and induced positive
impact on the GDP and the labor market. In addition,
it includes other sustainable parameters such as
avoided carbon dioxide emissions, savings in electric-
ity consumption, balance of payments and demand
satisfaction. “In the coming decades,” continues the
manager, “the growing need for clean energy and
the global commitment to SDG’s will lead to business
growth. Investments will be more local and will pro-
mote higher quality employment.”
“We want them to be consistent with the company’s
sustainable development model. Our progress must
also mean the progress of communities based on
good coexistence,” concludes Rosa Soto, Sustainabili-
ty Manager at ACCIONA.
MANAGEMENT
OF SOCIAL AND
RURAL IMPACT
Research,
development,
manufacturing,
transportation,
installation,
operation and
maintenance.
The sector
generates
long-term
employment.

42
The cutting head
needs the most
modiﬁcations to be
able to adapt the
TBM to the type
of terrain it has to
bore through.
42
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43
IN
Noblejas (Toledo, Spain), titans are slumbering.
ACCIONA’s Central Machinery Workshops have
reconditioned a total of 10 self-performance tun-
nel boring machines, and since 2008, the TBMs
have bored through more than 26 miles of tunnel
as part of eight projects, a total of nearly 90 miles.
In the years since it was founded, the company has
executed 47 projects in eight countries, tunneling
through more than 200 miles.
For example, the Follo Line tunnels, twin corri-
dors 12 miles long and 30 feet wide, due to link Ski
and Oslo in the largest railway construction job in
Norwegian history. Another project is the tunnel
for Line 1 on the Quito Metro, which smashed a
world record, with almost a mile drilled in just 30
days. It’s not possible to just improvise a podium
like that, and training started more than 40 years
earlier in 1973, when the company excavated the
tunnel for the Tagus-Segura aqueduct.
LUZ DE AMERICA
In order to understand the challenge, you’ll have
to scale up to TBM size. ACCIONA’s YouTube
channel shows a high-speed video of operations
to adapt Luz de America, one of the three TBMs
that worked on the Quito Metro (the others were
La Guaragua and La Carolina). Dozens of employ-
ees tinker with each component, putting togeth-
er and fine-tuning a machine that’s over three
stories high. As a finale, a slow-motion sequence
shows the head breaking through its first rock
face, the first step in a 12-mile journey.
The Noblejas workshops are expecting a success-
ful outcome. They apply all the modifications the
by
Ángel Luis
Sucasas
TUNNELING
YOU WON’T FIND MANY CONSTRUCTION JOBS AS
COMPLEX, EXPENSIVE AND TOUGH AS A TUNNEL,
AND YOU’LL FIND EVEN FEWER MACHINES AS
COMPLEX, EXPENSIVE AND AS TOUGH AS A
TBM. EVEN SO, THE FACTORY MODELS AREN’T
QUITE UP TO THE JOB: THEY NEED SPECIALIZED
CUSTOMIZATION SO THEY CAN POWER THEIR WAY
THROUGH THE HARDEST ROCK FACE.
C U S T O M I Z E D
HOW IT WORKS

44
HOW IT WORKS
In addition to cost,
performance, and lead-
time benefits, managing
quality and keeping
your talent on board are
crucial when modifying
TBMs. This factor is
closely linked to the
value of experience, the
legacy from that first
tunnel in 1973 and from
decades concentrating
on getting a process
absolutely right. “It’s
very important that
there’s continuity in
the team of people
employed in making
a tunnel, they need
to be involved both
in reconditioning the
TBM for future projects
and in actually seeing
those projects through.
Knowing how things
work leads to improved
productivity,” explains
Mariano Calero.
TALENT FACTOR
ANDTIME FACTOR
machine needs to power its way through all kinds
of terrain. “We undertake almost all projects with
our own technical staff, who are extremely well
qualified, hugely experienced and with a high
level of specialization in the sector,” says Rober-
to Carballo, Director of the Work Execution and
Team Management Support Unit in the company’s
Construction business division.
“We have the equipment we need,” adds Mariano
Calero, Head of Tunnels at Self Performing Office
(SPO). “We have tunnel boring machine experts
dealing with lifting gear, pneumatic and electri-
cal installations, machine tools, special tools and
welding equipment. Finally, and most impor-
tantly, we have people with expertise in all the
relevant industry areas: materials and welding,
electrical, electronic, automation, mechanical,
hydraulic, oil-hydraulic and pneumatic.”
THREEFOLD ADVANTAGE
Calero points out its strategic benefits. These start
with delivery lead times: reconditioning a TBM,
unlike building one from scratch, can save up to
eight months for a job. The customization process
takesapproximatelyfourtoeightmonths,compared
totheyearneededformakingabrandnewmachine.
It also improves long-term commitment. All
machines go through an initial period with low-
er mechanical availability coefficients. “We call it
the youth curve, when problems can arise due to
design defects or during the manufacturing and
assembly process,” Calero emphasizes. This risk of
defects is even greater because their considerable
cost and complexity means they aren’t mass-pro-
duced; each one involves a one-off project.
A third benefit, and one that makes all the differ-
ence, is that of hard cash, of investment. The dif-
ference between reusing a TBM and manufacturing
a new one is estimated to be in the range of 25% to
40%ofthedirectcostoverthereplacementvalue.
ACCIONA
uses its own
technical
experts to
work on the
machines
and achieve
optimum
performance
in terms of
capacity,
consumption
and deadlines.

45
HOW IT WORKS
1
3
5
2
4
6
HOW THE TBM IS CUSTOMIZED
Anin-depthstudyismadeoftheadaptationsandmodiﬁcationsneeded
toemployausedTBMonafutureproject.Theﬁrstthingtolookatisthe
typeofterrain,suchaswhetheritconsistsofparticularlyhardrocksor
withsoftsoilthatmaygetverywetorevenhavepocketsofwater.
Reconditioning gets underway in the Central Workshops in Noblejas
(Spain). Work includes an individual quality control for each component,
from cutting head parts and geometric parameters (to check which
tolerances are viable) all the way through to the welds. Vital components
required for the TBM to operate are also bench-tested, including engines,
gear reducers and hydraulic pumps.
Based on the previous step, budgets
must be analyzed, tasks and deadlines
are planned, and resources are allocated
for reconditioning the TBM.
After that, the TBM (which can be over 325 feet long)
is pre-assembled and tests are carried out on the
entire machine under vacuum to check whether the
main performance parameters are within the required
tolerances, replicating exactly what conditions will be
when it starts operating on site.
Once the results of these tests have been approved, the TBM
is dismantled and all the components are packed and shipped
anywhere in the world in containers and by special land transport.
When it arrives on site the TBM is pre-assembled and assembled once
again, it is signed off and work can begin.

46
IT’S MALLORCA, BUT IT MAY SOON BE TENERIFE. OR MADEIRA.
OR INISHMORE IN THE ARAN ISLANDS. AND THEN THE CONQUEST
OF THE CONTINENT. THAT’S THE GOAL OF THE GREEN HYSLAND
COMMUNITY PROJECT. THE ‘H’ STANDS FOR THE CLEAN
HYDROGEN PRODUCED FROM RENEWABLE ENERGY.
by Ramiro Varea
THE ISLAND
GREEN
HYDROGEN
OF
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47
CLEAN ENERGY
At the moment, electrification accounts for 20% of
the planet’s final energy. Doubling this or even reach-
ing 50% seems like a reasonable goal, but overcom-
ing it is made more difficult for economic as well as
technical reasons. Some sectors are difficult to elec-
trify, such as heavy transport, intensive industry or
aviation. At least until there is a technological leap
forward in batteries.
Hence the thirst for alternative fuels like green hydro-
gen. It is versatile, it can be used as fuel or transformed
into electricity for a wide range of activities, from home
and commerce to transport and industrial machinery.
It is clean, as producing it from renewable sources
doesn’t involve pollution. It can be stored to compen-
sate for the drop in electricity generation when the
weather is bad. It can be piped, and current gas infra-
TNST
TTNGE,
TTTTTHE
TTD
TTIL
TTTTTT

48
VOLUNTARIADO
structure is already prepared for transport and
storage if it is mixed with natural gas.
It represents an opportunity for the planet, and
for Spain as a producer due to the country’s solar
and wind generation capacity. We can transport
it without the need for large investments as we
already have these gas networks, in addition to
large energy companies and government plans for
electricity and hydrogen implementation.
The goal of this roadmap is to deploy 8.9 billion
euros of investment so that, within ten years,
25% of renewable industrial consumption will be
green hydrogen; contribute to the energy tran-
sition and generate sustainable employment.
The ideal is to achieve climate neutrality with a
100% renewable electricity system no later than
2050. The EU has taken on the challenge, aim-
ing to increase production to 10 million tons in
a decade and accelerate that rate for large-scale
implementation in 2050.
Steps are already being taken in the form of large
community projects such as Green Hysland (from
2021 to 2025), promoted by ACCIONA in addition
to other companies. The Commission is provid-
ing funding to the tune of 10 million euros for this
ﬁrst strategic plan in southern Europe to deploy a
green hydrogen ecosystem in Mallorca, involving
generation from solar energy, distribution, and a
consumption of at least 300 tons per year.
EUROPEAN HUB
The list of partners involved gives an idea of
the size: there are 30 partners from 11 coun-
tries (nine EU countries in addition to Chile and
Morocco), with the backing in Spain’s case of
the central and regional administration. This will

49
Green hydrogen will fight carbon bet-
ter and more efficiently. According to
Bank of America, it could provide 24%
of the world’s energy needs in 2050,
which would translate into up to 30%
in emission reductions. The Interna-
tional Energy Agency (IEA) estimates
that obtaining green hydrogen from
renewable sources would save the
world 830 million tons of CO2
per
year, the amount produced when this
gas is made using fossil fuels (so-
called gray or blue hydrogen).
CO2 CLEANER
Easy, it’s a well-known process, hence its potential for large-
scale production. The process uses water electrolysis from
electricity derived from renewable sources such as wind and
photovoltaic. This chemical process changes water into hydro-
gen and oxygen gas molecules. No CO2
, carbon dioxide or other
polluting emissions are produced at any time.
HOW IT’S OBTAINED
be the first European Hub, the first island econ-
omy to be based on this gas. It also serves as the
pilot project for replication on other islands and
archipelagos like Tenerife, Madeira (Portugal),
Aran (Ireland), Ameland (Netherlands), as well
as some of the Greek islands.
It’s based on the Power to Green Hydrogen Mal-
lorca industrial project — a consortium led by
ACCIONA and Enagás also involving IDAE and
Cemex — that includes the construction of an
electrolysis plant for obtaining renewable hydro-
gen in the municipality of Lloseta. The facility
will be located on the site of a Cemex plant that
is shutting down operations and will guarantee a
renewable supply by means of two new photovol-
taic plants planned in Lloseta and Petra.
ON A LARGE SCALE
The Mallorcan tourism mecca will use green
hydrogen as fuel in fleets of buses and rental
vehicles, to generate heat and power in public
and commercial buildings, and as auxiliary pow-
er for ferries and port operations. It will create a
supply station and study the use of that hydro-
gen with guaranteed origin in the Balearic gas
pipeline network, potentially accessible to any
consumer, in partnership with Redexis.
Total investment in the Mallorcan project is 50 mil-
lion euros, including the business models for its
replication. “Green Hysland will be the first hydro-
gen valley on a European island and will demon-
strate its ability to decarbonize an entire region on
an unprecedented scale,” explains Bart Biebuyck,
Executive Director of the EU organization Fuel Cell
and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking.
Green hydrogen, an engine for industry. This is
the name of the digital meeting recently organ-
ized by Cinco Días and ACCIONA with represent-
atives from the sector, the research communi-
ty, and the administrations involved. They all
reached one conclusion: it can promote indus-
trial reconversions if production costs fall and
infrastructure is created.
Belén Linares, Director of Innovation at ACCIONA’s
Energy Division, is optimistic: “The cost curve is
falling, the time has come to pilot serious, full-
scale projects that allow us to turn this energy into
business. The legislation has to adapt, but we will
achieve it with public-private partnership. To do
this, we will need systems to distinguish what is
green from what is not.”
OH
+ -
+
O
O
O H H
O H H
H
H
H
H
electrolysis
Oxygen
Gas
Test
Tube
Electrode
Cathode
Power source
Water with
soluble salt
Hydrogen
Gas
Anode

50
COMIC
IllustratorCésarSebastián•ScriptJuanPabloZurdo
50_ACCIONA_Comic_ENG.indd 5050_ACCIONA_Comic_ENG.indd 50 3/12/20 15:523/12/20 15:52

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Y
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CMY
K
76 ACCINA INMOBILIARIA ENG.ai 2 27/11/20 13:1476 ACCINA INMOBILIARIA ENG.ai 2 27/11/20 13:14

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76 ACCIONA APD CONTRAPORTADA_ENG.ai 1 27/11/20 12:5176 ACCIONA APD CONTRAPORTADA_ENG.ai 1 27/11/20 12:51

ACCIONA Magazine 76: the Global Challenge of Access to Water

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ACCIONA Magazine 76: the Global Challenge of Access to Water