Iberdrola has sued Repsol before the Santander Commercial Court for unfair competition, accusing it of using misleading advertising to publicize its renewable fuels. “Their campaigns constitute a violation of the Unfair Competition Law, by including acts of deception and misleading omissions regarding the company’s environmental commitment,” Iberdrola explains to explain the reason for the lawsuit. Repsol describes the lawsuit, of which it has not had formal knowledge, as unfounded.
As El Confidencial has advanced and La Vanguardia has been able to confirm, Iberdrola appeals to the Competition Law in its lawsuit and identifies up to 15 references in which they consider that it is being greenwashed or ecological posturing, by positioning itself as a “leading company in the energy transition.” , which protects the environment or “sustainable company”.
In the opinion of Iberdrola, Repsol “It is the company in Spain with the highest greenhouse gas emissions, and on the other hand, in its communications it defines itself as a leader in sustainability and energy transition” and omits issues such as that in 2022 it increased its CO? emissions by 16% (being the largest CO? emitter in Spain), which “has allocated 82% of its investments to fossil fuels and only 0.82% to the production of renewable energy.”
Iberdrola’s decision is based on a European trend focused on highlighting greenwashing practices, which were included in the Directive on Consumer Empowerment for the Green Transition, which introduces specific rules to address unfair and misleading commercial practices, such as the case of greenwashing.
The European Union has also published an Interpretation Guide to Directive 2005/29/EC, relating to unfair practices regarding environmental declarations. In February, without going any further, the Commission demanded that the fashion website Zalando remove “greens” because they were misleading. Last November, the European Consumer Organization and the International Organization for Consumer Research and Testing prepared a study, co-financed by the EU, on ‘greenwashing’ in which it was concluded that this practice of deception is not collateral in the green transition, but an obstacle. The Spanish Ministry of Consumer Affairs itself announced last week that the new Sustainable Consumption Law will identify illegal practices in environmental matters.
Based on this, Iberdrola demands before the judge that unfair competition be declared, that Repsol be forced to cease this type of messages and to withdraw all advertising and campaigns identified as “greenwashing”, as well as to publicize the ruling through all means. at your fingertips, from the company’s Press Room to all your social networks for at least once a day for a week.
For its part, Repsol, which claims to have learned of this lawsuit from the press, has defended that “its strategy and value proposition to customers are unique in the Iberian Peninsula.” They consider that Iberdrola’s movement may be generated by “the nervousness of a company that is not used to operating in a competitive framework, but rather to depending on the rules of an eminently regulated market.”
Repsol also remembers that its commitment to the environment was reflected in its 2019 plan when it committed to “be a net zero emissions company in 2050 with intermediate goals in 2025, 2030 and 2040, becoming the first company in the world to your sector to assume that commitment.” And that in the last “five years it has become a multi-energy company, with a unique commercial offer in Spain that includes savings for its clients and the ability to satisfy the energy and mobility needs of anyone.”
The company chaired by Antonio Brufau “will maintain its strategic clarity and ambition in the energy transition, with the aim of offering the goods and services that society demands, at a competitive price, with the lowest possible carbon footprint and guaranteeing at the same time supply in a macroeconomic and geopolitical context marked by volatility and uncertainty.”
