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Spain: Spanish Lobby puts pressure on Brussels to end Electricity monopoly

By  |  January 5, 2016

Spain’s construction lobby, known as the “Brick Lobby” and led by construction giants OHL and ACS has set its sights on Brussels, putting pressure on the European Commission to force the Spanish government to put an end to the electricity distribution monopoly enjoyed by Red Eléctrica (REE).

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    At play are several million euros in future investment for a market currently dominated by the semi-public Red Eléctrica, which has been granted the right to develop new grid interchange projects estimated at an initial investment of between 1.6 and 1.9 billion euros.

    The lobby has raised questions on why construction companies have been blocked from bidding on contracts to operate high-voltage power grids, which has created a national monopoly within the European Union’s common market. The EC had earlier declared that Spain is in violation of at least 10 EU directives regulating the Electric and Hydrocarbons market. The commission has also started looking at Spanish monopolies in this sector, and has requested the Spanish government for explanations.

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