Pedro Sanchez, President of the Government has opened the World Economic Forum in Davos (Switzerland), to predict that Spain, the Iberian Peninsula, and, I would argue, southern Europe will be able to respond to Russia's dependence on fossil fuel energy. In an interview with CNBC, the American network, this was revealed.
According to Pedro Sanchez, President of the Spanish Government and a strong advocate for increasing interconnections between Europe and Spain, the regasification of Spain and Southern Europe is an opportunity for the European Union to decrease its dependence on Russia.
The President of the Government stated that he believes the EU's energy market is poorly designed. He also said that it does not have strong interconnections within the EU. This has highlighted the need to conduct a significant European reflection on how to adapt the system.
Sanchez reminded us that Spain accounts for around 37% of EU's total regasification capacity and that the Iberian Peninsula is responsible for almost half of EU's LNG storage capacities. He also said that interconnection was the only problem. "That's why I believe it is important that the Commission makes a statement about the need to intensify and increase interconnections between Iberian Peninsula, the EU and the rest."
The President of the Government on the other hand plans to speak twice at the World Economic Forum this Tuesday. He has stated that the fundamentals and strength of the Spanish economy are "very strong".
Sanchez reminded that the Executive forecasts for GDP growth in 2022 are 4.3%. He also highlighted that the evolution in employment was "very impressive", with over 20 million people employed. This figure is not possible in Spain for many years.
"Our projections point to a deficit less than 3% GDP by 2025, and a public credit less than 110% GDP," he said to highlight the Government's commitment towards fiscal consolidation and the transition into a greener economy in Spain.
Sanchez also assured that, through the European recovery funds and the reform agenda, the government is prepared to mitigate the effects of war and modernize the economy as well as increase productivity and competitiveness. He stated that "We face the future of Spain's economy with optimism".
Concerning the possibility of normalizing the ECB’s monetary policies, the Spanish president felt it was important to maintain the ECB’s monetary and fiscal policies aligned.
