Iberdrola España's innovation and training centre in Castilla y León receives international visit
- These state-of-the-art facilities located in the Zamora town of Muelas del Pan welcomed more than 30 participants to a seminar as part of the cross-border cooperation project called INGENIOS DUERO DOURO.
- The councillor for tourism on the Zamora City Council, Christoph Strieder, and the Iberdrola España representative in Castilla y León, Miguel Calvo, accompanied the group on their tour.
The pioneering innovation and training centre that Iberdrola España opened last year in the Zamora town of Muelas del Pan next to the Ricobayo power plant this morning hosted around thirty participants to a seminar as part of the cross-border cooperation project INGENIOS DUERO DOURO.
The flour mills that are still in the province and the hydroelectric dams are examples of Zamora's industrial heritage, another ‘jewel’ of the province that the aim is to highlight with this international workshop organised by the Zamora City Council with Iberdrola España.
Iberdrola España's innovation centre, which represents the company's commitment to attracting talent, technology, R&D and collaboration with technology centres as levers to lead the energy transition, the green recovery of the economy and the employment and employability of young people and senior professionals in sectors of the future, today hosted experts and professionals in the field of industrial, cultural and tourism heritage to reflect on the enhancement and dissemination of tangible and intangible industrial heritage, accompanied by the councillor for tourism on the Zamora City Council, Christoph Strieder, and Iberdrola España’s representative in Castilla y León, Miguel Calvo.
The aim of this first workshop was to analyse current knowledge on industrial heritage from a historical and evolutionary perspective and to showcase the promotion and enhancement of the cultural and natural resources related to that heritage.
The experts were able to visit the Hydraulics Lab which was a study and research centre for Iberdrola España when it faced its great energy challenge in the Duero system and in other scenarios such as the Sil. It has small models of the most representative dams, which give a precise explanation of the power and impact of the tremendously powerful water flows the rivers have, as well as the way to siphon off the surplus water to not compromise the safety of the dams and protect the riverbeds they discharge millions of litres a second into.
They also reported on various innovative projects in the field of new energy technologies - wind power and smart grids - in which the company has invested more than 2,000 million euros in R&D over the last decade, making Iberdrola España the world's leading private energy company in terms of investment in innovation.
Pioneering center
These state-of-the-art facilities, where nearly 1,000 employees, both new recruits and the rest, receive theoretical and practical cross-disciplinary training in their classrooms every year, contribute to the lively sustainable economics of the area.
They include an innovative and open space for skills training, hydraulic models and even a virtual reality simulator. This important milestone represents the commitment of the private sector and the administration to the growth and development of Spain's rural areas, an open door to a future of opportunities for the province of Zamora and the community.
Many of the 55 hours of training that each Iberdrola España employee receives a year are given in these classrooms and workshops.
Iberdrola España, creating value for society
Iberdrola España wants to maintain its focus on and contact with the province of Zamora and with all the parties involved, and to do so it is committed to retaining and attracting young talent. It is returning to its origins with a focus on the future, talent and innovation. The facilities that have housed Iberdrola España's Hydraulics Lab for decades, a world reference in the field of engineering next to the Ricobayo dam, have been transformed into a pioneering project: an innovation and training centre through which at least 800 future professionals from all corners of Spain will pass every year.
Looking to the future, Iberdrola España will continue to invest heavily in this region to continue offering its almost 130,000 customers in Zamora an increasingly better quality of service. It plans to invest 36 million euros in electricity networks in the province over the next four years, another 40 million euros in the expansion of wind farms, 4.7 million euros in hydroelectric infrastructures over the last two years and a recurring fiscal contribution of more than 13 million euros a year in provincial taxes.
The company has 17 facilities in the province of Zamora with an installed capacity of 976 MW, four wind infrastructures and 13 hydroelectric plants, a clean and flexible energy source that creates jobs and is committed to training professionals in a booming sector that offers jobs to young adults. With the Rei Afonso Henriques Foundation, it also teaches young people from schools in Zamora about the risks of climate change.