The energy sector is heralding the ascent of Sara Aagesen. She currently serves as Secretary of State for Energy and has been chosen by Pedro Se1nchez to succeed Teresa Ribera as minister for the Ecological Transition and as the government
0s third deputy prime minister. Industry groups and major associations applaud the choice for its strictly technical profile and for a leadership style that emphasizes continuity. Aagesen has spent years as Ribera
0s right hand and brings extensive experience from the core machinery that shapes Spain
0s energy policy.
The major groups and sector associations emphasize her cooperative approach and deep understanding of the industry and its regulation. The fear that the leadership might be taken by a purely political figure starting from zero is fading. From the big utilities, oil majors, gas distributors, and renewable energy firms there is a clear sense of satisfaction that the head of energy policy is someone who has been their direct interlocutor in recent years, despite clashes over exceptional regulations during the harshest moments of the energy crisis and the current disputes over the windfall tax on major energy producers.
The appointment is seen as recognition of Aagesen
0s distinguished track record and commitment to sustainability and the energy transition in the country. The assessment of the appointment is highly positive because it signals continuity, according to the wind energy association and leaders in the renewables sector. They note her sustained commitment and effectiveness in this area since her previous role.
Aagesen has been Secretary of State for Energy since January 2020, after joining two years earlier as Ribera
0s cabinet adviser in the first government of Se1nchez. She was not a run-of-the-mill adviser; she helped steer the planning of the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030 and the Long-Term Strategy 2050, the two major roadmaps underpinning the national energy policy and the environmental targets for the coming decades.
From the electricity industry association Aelec, which brings together Iberdrola, Endesa and EDP, comes praise for a fluid and trusted relationship maintained with the future vice president. From the association of major oil companies AOP, which includes Repsol, Moeve, BP and Galp, comes emphasis on working together with Aagesen in recent years and that she is a familiar figure to the sector. And from the gas industry body Sedige1s they highlight her broad and proven experience in the energy sector, her ability to interlocute with different market players, and her commitment to sustainability.
The appointment is deemed a win for continuity and reflects a professional with deep technical knowledge and a strong track record shaping the regulatory framework of the energy sector, according to Jose Luis Moya, director general of the Renewable Energy Producers Association.
Offensive against the windfall tax
The celebrated appointment of Aagesen to lead energy policy arrives amid a clash between the big energy groups and the Government over the extension of the extraordinary windfall tax. The coalition government barely secured the reform in parliament after multi-party negotiations, with details to be ironed out. The vice president and finance minister will bear direct responsibility for refining the tax, but the first steps of the new ecological transition leadership will be shaped by how this issue is resolved.
Before the vote, the major energy players joined in an unprecedented push against the extension and threatened to pause investments in green projects worth up to 30 billion euros over the coming three years. All the Spanish energy giants united in a joint statement via Enerclub, a lobby that includes Iberdrola, Endesa and EDP, as well as gas major Naturgy and oil players Repsol, Moeve, BP and TotalEnergies.
Members of Enerclub, led by Naturgy
0s president Francisco Reyne9s, warned that achieving the ambitious environmental and energy goals of the National Integrated Energy and Climate Plan will require a durable, long-term investment process. The PNIEC remains the green roadmap for the Government for the decade, and its full deployment in the coming years is a central objective for Sara Aagesen as the new vice president for the Ecological Transition.
Todos los retos energéticos
Aagesen takes charge of a department that is a pillar of Pedro Se1nchez
0s policy since arriving at the presidency, with the drive for the energy transition as a non-negotiable goal. The new minister has years of direct involvement in designing and implementing the national energy policy, and now she must complete many of the big challenges the sector will press for.
Among the matters on the table, the vice president will need to enable the expansion and modernization of the electricity networks as a crucial step to make the energy transition possible and to support another necessary revolution: digitalization. The spine of the electricity system will be essential not only to support the mass rollout of renewables but also to connect large industrial projects to the growth of data centers and future green hydrogen plants.
The organizations that manage the high-voltage transmission network and the distribution networks will have to carry out multi-billion investments in coming years to enlarge and upgrade the grid. The network business operates under regulatory caps set by law, with returns paid through grid tolls added to customers
0electricity bills. The major energy firms are pressing the Government to raise those caps and seek higher charges as part of the upcoming remuneration reforms for 2026 and the following six years.
The ministry will also drive essential steps to enable the large-scale deployment of renewables by advancing regulations for battery storage, launching capacity mechanisms to remunerate technologies that ensure supply amid intermittent renewables (including gas plants, pumped hydro, and storage), unlocking the charging network for electric vehicles, launching new auctions for renewables with long-term price guarantees, supporting the rollout of bio-methane and green hydrogen, and establishing the future National Energy Commission, among other priorities.