Jose Ignacio Sanchez Galan

José Ignacio Sánchez Galán

José Ignacio Sánchez Galán (born Salamanca, 1950) is a Spanish businessman. He is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Iberdrola, a multinational group with a presence in dozens of countries comprising major companies including Scottish Power in the United Kingdom, Iberdrola USA, and Elektro in Brazil.

Biography

Born in Salamanca, Spain in 1950, married and the father of four children. He then moved to Madrid where he graduated in electro-mechanical industrial engineering from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingeniería (ICAI) at the Universidad Pontificia Comillas.

He also graduated in Business Administration and Foreign Trade from the Instituto Católico de Administración y Dirección de Empresas (ICADE) at the Universidad Pontificia Comillas (Madrid) and obtained a degree in General Business Administration and Foreign Trade from the Escuela de Organización Industrial (EOI) of Madrid. He speaks English, French and Italian.

Career

Galan began his professional career in 1972 at Sociedad Española del Acumulador Tudor, where from various executive posts he managed the company’s international expansion. In the early 1990s, Ignacio Galán managed Industria de Turbopropulsores (ITP)^[1] from its foundation, promoting the design, manufacturing and maintenance of aircraft engines and gas turbines. At ITP, Galán integrated technicians from the naval sector in Bilbao, when the latter underwent restructuring, and who were thus able to redirect their professional activities towards aeronautics.

Between 1993 and 1995 he was chairman of Eurojet, the European consortium which developed and manufactured Eurojet 200 engines used by Eurofighter. In 1995, he was appointed CEO at the newly created Airtel Móvil (today Vodafone Spain), which opened up the telecommunications sector in Spain to competition.^[2]

Galán’s appointment in 2001 as executive vice-president and CEO of Iberdrola marked the beginning of the company’s transformation. In 2006 he was named executive chairman of the company, which has now grown to become one of the world’s largest electricity companies and a global leader in wind energy.^[3]

Ignacio Sánchez Galán, visiting the works at Maine Power Reliability Program (U.S.A.).

He is also a visiting lecturer at Strathclyde University in Glasgow and he has been a lecturer at ICAI’s Industrial Engineering College. In 2011 he was given an Honorary Degree by the University of Edinburgh and by the University of Salamanca, in recognition to his capacity for innovation, constant change and strategic vision throughout his professional career.^[4] In 2012 he has been appointed chairman of the University of Salamanca’s Social Council. In February 2013 he received an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree from the Strathclyde University.

Galán's various awards include the following: Best Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in European utilities in the 2013 All-Europe Executive Team ranking, issued by Institutional Investor Research Group;^[5] Best CEO in the European utilities sector and among Spanish-listed companies for investor relations, according to the 2011 Thomson Extel Survey;^[6] Best CEO in the European utilities sector in the 2011 All-Europe Executive Team ranking, prepared by Institutional Investor Research;^[7] 2008 Business Leader of the Year award from the Spain-U.S. Chamber of Commerce;^[8] and the 2008 International Economy Award from the Cristóbal Gabarrón Foundation.

He was named Best CEO of the Year in 2006 in the Platts Global Energy Awards;^[9] Best Top Executive Award in the European utility sector five times in a row (2003-2007) from the Institutional Investor Research Group,^[10] and Best CEO in Investor Relations (2003-2005) from IR Magazine (awards based on opinion surveys from among stock market investment fund analysts and managers).^[11]

He is a Consul of Bilbao, appointed by the Bilbao Chamber of Commerce, and was awarded the 2009 Salamanca Gold Medal. In October 2011, Galán received the Lagun Onari distinction as friend of the Basques bestowed by the Basque Government.

Galán is a member of the board of trustees of the following organisations, among others: Princess of Asturias Foundation, COTEC Foundation, Carolina Foundation, Comillas-ICAI University Foundation, Aspen Institute Spain Foundation, Royal Elcano Institute and the Prado Museum’s Royal Board of Trustees. He belongs to the Círculo de Empresarios Vascos (Circle of Basque Entrepreneurs), the Círculo de Empresarios de Madrid (Entrepreneur Circle of Madrid), the Círculo de Economía (Economy Circle), the Consejo Empresarial para la Competitividad (Business Council for Competitiveness) and the Asociación para el Progreso de la Dirección (Association for the Advancement of Management).

He has been a trustee of Fundación Universitaria Comillas-ICAI and of Fundación Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca. In January 2014 he was appointed as new Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Energy Utilities Community.

In May 2014, the Queen approved the honorary award to Ignacio Galán of Commander of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (Civil Division), for his work to promote the British energy sector and trade relations and investment between the United Kingdom and Spain.^[12]

Additionally, Mr. Galán chairs the Electricity Cluster of the World Economic Forum (Davos) and is on the Steering Committee of the European Round Table of Industrialists. He is a member of the Global Sustainable Electricity Partnership –supported by the United Nations– and of the G10, group which brings together the main European electric companies.

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