New lost battle for Iberdrola in its particular war with Repsol over ‘greenwashing’. The advertising control body, Autocontrol, considers the advertising disseminated by the electricity company “misleading” in radio and television in which he promotes the aerothermal energy (heat pumps) as a substitute for gas boilers, forces the electricity company to rectify these announcements and pay the costs of the process.
The country’s main electricity company, which filed an appeal that was dismissed by the agency, is shown dissatisfied with the resolution and responds with the announcement of “a new campaign commercial” along the same lines.
The ‘crux’ of the problem centers on Iberdrola’s statement that “the European Council will force Spain to phase out of gas (and diesel) boilers” from 2040 to ‘sell’ their heating solutions heat pumps. The regulatory body assures, as Repsol defends, that no current regulations at that moment It prohibited gas boilers or their replacement with aerothermal energy. What there was was a “proposal” for a directive on energy efficiency for buildings, approved by the European Parliament, which had to be ratified by the countries.
Iberdrola consider that reasoning”contrary to common sense and to the use of the Spanish language”, according to sources from the electricity company. “As has happened on previous occasions, it seems that Autocontrol, rather than using its own reasoning, has chosen to literally adhere to the argument made by the claimant. Claiming that campaigning on future and foreseeable events and regulations is misleading is against all market logic and advertising”, add the same sources.
In any case, as of today this directive has been approved and has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union this Wednesday with the same text of the proposal, so that the electricity company that directs Ignacio Sánchez Galan reaffirms that “in no way” had he carried out no irregularity.
But beyond the temporal issue, Autocontrol adds that the directive refers to the “effort” that Member States must make to “replace certain boilersdoes not refer to these as ‘gas boilers’ or ‘gas and diesel boilers’, but rather as ‘gas boilers’. fossil fuels‘”, explains Autocontrol. That is, you will not be able to use the natural gasbut yes the renewable gas (biogas or biomethane), he adds.
“It must be affirmed deceptive character of a statement according to which a phasing out gas boilerssince – even if the norm were definitively approved in its current terms – it would affect, not to gas boilers, but to fossil fuels and – therefore – to the boilers that can only use gas of fossil origin. The standard, consequently, would not imply the elimination of gas boilers that could use gas that is not of fossil origin”, concludes the regulatory body.
At this point, the electric company assures that “it is still is to be defined within the European Union What will be the definition of fossil boilers? for the application of this Directive.” “Nowhere is it established that they will be those that use exclusively fossil fuelwhich has been the Jury’s own elaboration, guided, again, by the dictates of Repsol,” he adds.
The Directive published this Wednesday establishes in its article 3 that each country must carry out a “national building renovation plan” which must include certain measures, including those aimed at “the decarbonization of heating and cooling, including through district heating and cooling networks, and the phasing out fossil fuels in heating and cooling, with a view to a complete elimination of fossil fuel boilers by 2040 at the latest.
Thus concludes a new chapter in the open war between electricity and oil, which began with Iberdrola’s lawsuit against Repsol for ‘greenwashing’ in its advertising about biofuels -which continues its course in court- and continued with the claim for the same fact before Self-control. In that case, the resolution was also favorable to the oil company considering that there had not been any type of irregularity.
Self-control
Self-control It is an “independent self-regulatory body for the advertising industry in Spain”, as defined on its website. Established in 1995 as a non-profit association, it is made up of advertisers, advertising agencies, media and professional associations with the aim of working for responsible advertising. The board of directors of this organization is made up of representatives of various Spanish companies, including the head of advertising, sponsorship and events at Repsol, Natalia Villoriaas stated on said website.
Claims are resolved by a jury “composed of prestigious professionals with recognized qualification in the sectors of Law, Commercial Communication, Economics and Consumer Protection” and its members are “independent of the associative bodies and the attached entities to Self-Control”. 25% of its members are appointed at the proposal of the General Directorate of Consumer Affairs.
