• The agreement includes aspects such as the improvement of sustainable mobility in the aviation sector, the analysis and formulation of proposals aimed at promoting the development and consumption of new fuels with low environmental impact such as low-carbon fuels, and the implementation of joint R&D&I actions.
• This collaboration is part of the Defense Policy Directive, which includes, among its objectives, “to support the defense industry, contributing to boosting the economy and the national productive base and to ensuring its resilience and the development of a national and European defense industrial, technological and innovation base”.
• Both institutions, private and public, have signed a General Action Protocol, in which all future activities and projects will be specified with the aim of achieving more sustainable mobility and more efficient energy management.

The CEO of Repsol, Josu Jon Imaz, and the Chief of Staff of the Spanish Air Force, Air General Javier Salto Martínez-Avial, have signed a collaboration agreement within the scope of the Connected, Sustainable and Intelligent Air Base (BACSI) project.

The agreement between the multi-energy company and the Air Force seeks to promote sustainable mobility in the air sector. The analysis and formulation of proposals aimed at promoting the development and consumption of new fuels with low environmental impact, such as low-carbon fuels, and the implementation of joint R&D&I actions.

Likewise, both organizations undertake, individually and jointly, to share strategies that favor the development of sustainability and energy efficiency initiatives that benefit both institutions.

The Spanish Air Force has launched the BACSI project, whose main objective is to increase the effectiveness, productivity, efficiency and sustainability of air bases. Therefore, the alliance with Repsol, a leading company in multi-energy supply in Spain, will allow the development of systems perfectly aligned with several of the objectives of the Air Force BACSI project, mainly in the functional areas of sustainability 4.0, global connectivity, and energy efficiency, and environmental sustainability.

This collaboration is part of the Defense Policy Directive, August 4, 2020, which includes among its objectives “to support the defense industry, contributing to boosting the economy and the national productive base and to ensuring its resilience and the development of a national and European industrial, technological and innovation base in Defense.”

To fulfill its mission successfully, the Air Force needs to have cutting-edge capabilities, which are achieved thanks to innovation and efficiency, areas where Repsol is a benchmark and which are essential to moving forward with the ambitious project of the Sustainable and Intelligent Connected Air Base (BACSI). The BACSI project aims to be a driving force for the EA to become the Aerospace Force that Spain needs, applying disruptive technologies to improve efficiency in using available resources and maximizing operational effectiveness. In the words of its Chief of Staff, Air General Javier Salto Martinez-Avial, the Air Force and the national industry need each other.

For his part, Repsol’s CEO, Josu Jon Imaz, said that “this collaboration agreement with an institution such as the Spanish Air Force is another step in the development of our Strategic Plan, which will allow us to advance towards our goal of being a zero net emissions company by 2050. It also consolidates our position as a company capable of offering a global response to the needs of the Spanish Air Force, which requires a multi-energy solution to cover its energy demand”.

In this regard, Repsol has been immersed for years in the process of transformation and diversification of its businesses with the aim of leading the energy transition, being the first company in its sector to support the Kyoto Protocol, to issue a green bond, and also, in December 2019, to set the goal of being a company with zero net emissions by 2050.

Repsol has made progress in the production of fuels with a low carbon footprint for the aviation sector, where alternatives such as electrification are not viable at this time, producing in 2020 and 2021 the first three batches of biojet in the Spanish market at its industrial centers in Puertollano, Tarragona, and Petronor.

In addition, Repsol leads the multi-energy supply in Spain, providing solutions that improve efficiency and increase the weight of low-emission energies. For this reason, Repsol has already launched various initiatives such as the construction in Cartagena of the first advanced biofuels plant in Spain, and one of the largest synthetic fuels plants in the world, in the vicinity of the Petronor refinery, using renewable hydrogen and CO₂ as the only raw materials. These facilities will be commissioned in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

For all these reasons, Repsol and the Spanish Air Force have signed a general Action Protocol, which specifies all future activities and projects with the aim of achieving more sustainable mobility and more efficient energy management.