The first part of the training on “Compliance Requirements” was held within the framework of the SFF Learning Solutions.

Last Thursday, November 24, the first part of the training on “Compliance Requirements” took place at the Chambre des Métiers in Luxembourg. This session dealt with the topic of “Combating money laundering and terrorist financing” and was given by Dorit Hornung, manager at PWC and expert in this field, and by Álvaro Gómez, manager also at PWC Luxembourg.

The two-hour course covered topics such as an introduction to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism, the emerging pressure at the international level, its application in Luxembourg and the sanctions in this area, and introduced the concept of the beneficial owner or ultimate beneficial owner (UBO).

At the end of the event, participants received a diploma certifying their attendance and enjoyed a networking cocktail that allowed them to exchange ideas and opinions.

The Chamber presents its activities to 50 students from the Mondragon University

Last Wednesday 23rd November, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg participated as a speaker in a conference for 50 students of the first year of the degree in Business Administration and Management of the Mondragon University.

In the presentation, which took place in the Delegation of the Basque Country for the European Union, Sara Sánchez, Business Development Manager, and Víctor Lloret, commercial department, explained the functioning and services offered by the Chamber to Spanish, Belgian and Luxembourgish companies. Additionally, they presented the organised events and the European and international projects coordinated by the Chamber.

During their intervention, they also talked to the university students about their interests, their knowledge about the Chamber and about exports and imports between Belux and Spain.

From the Chamber, we would like to thank the Mondragon University for having counted on our institution and the attendees for the interest shown in the presentation.

Interview with Artur Sosna, Luxembourg Tourisme

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Hybrid training on “Public advice strategies and dialogue with European institutions”

On November 16 and 17, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg held in Brussels the fourth edition of its training course “Public Affairs strategies and dialogue with the European institutions”, aimed at Spanish businesses and associations.

More than fifteen representatives of companies and national sectoral associations participated in the course, interested in learning first-hand the tools to establish an effective dialogue with the EU institutions, and motivated to anticipate both risks and opportunities from the political and legislative action taking place in Brussels.

The first journey started with an introduction from our president, Pablo López-Álvarez, Senior Managing director at FTI Consulting, who presented a global vision on lobbying and the monitoring of the EU agenda. Following, European Affairs consultant and former MEP Ignasi Guardans spoke about the institutional structure of the EU and its surrounding ecosystem.

Afterwards, the CEOE’s Permanent Delegate in Brussels, Isabel Yglesias, presented the basic tools to follow and contribute to the European legislative process, and David Luengo, Indra’s Head Office in the capital, the role of the Public Affairs Director.

“Good lobbying is not a matter of presence, but of quality,” underlined Yglesias.

How to establish dialogue

In the afternoon, the attendees enjoyed a speech by Diego Canga, who gave practical advice on how to establish a good dialogue with the European institutions, especially with those of which he has been a member, such as the European Parliament, the Council of the EU, and the Commission, where he currently holds the position of Director in the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development.

Ignacio Sánchez-Recarte, Secretary General of the European Committee of Wine Companies (CEEV), then described the role of business associations and sectoral employers’ associations and their role in the European legislative process.

The day was completed with the intervention of Sebastián Rodríguez, General Director of Rollout Democracy, who presented a manual for advocacy campaigns and European public affairs through case studies, and Raquel García, researcher at the Elcano Royal Institute office in Brussels, who spoke about the projects that this organisation develops from “the capital” and the role played by Think Tanks within the Brussels ecosystem of influence.

After the presentations of the day, the Chamber organised a networking dinner with Spanish professionals and European officials, in which the participants of the training and the members of our Board of Directors were invited.

On November 17th, the training started with a visit to the Permanent Representation of Spain to the EU, where Raúl Fuentes Milani, Deputy Permanent Representative Ambassador, received the Spanish companies and associations to introduce them to the role of the Council, the priorities of the Spanish presidency during the second semester of 2023, or the functioning of the REPER in Brussels.

Transparency Register

Then, Juan Alfonso Herrero, Director of European Affairs at Mercadona, outlined the importance of the Transparency Register, a key tool for lobbying in Brussels, which has also contributed enormously to the professionalisation of the staff dedicated to Public Affairs.

The day continued with a visit to the European Parliament and a lunch with MEPs, which was attended by Pablo Arias, José Manuel García Margallo and Javier Zarzalejos, members of the Group of the European People’s Party. During the meeting, the MEPs explained the work they do in the Parliament, as well as the importance of ensuring that the interests of European companies reach Brussels. The lunch was also an opportunity for those attending to present and resolve their doubts about the dialogue between the organisations and the MEPs.

Back in the Chamber, Ruth Estrada, Partner of Schuman Associates, explained the keys to access European recovery funds, and Susana Garayoa, Head of Communication and European Institutional Relations at Zabala Innovation, presented the funding opportunities for companies through programmes such as Horizon Europe.

To end the course, Sonia Vila, Head of Unit of “Management and Resources” of the Presidential Service I.D.E.A. – Inspire, Debate, Engage and Accelerate Action of the European Commission and former member of President Von der Leyen’s cabinet, addressed the EU’s sphere of competence.

The training was closed by Marta González, Secretary General of the Chamber, who took the opportunity to explain the services and the role played by the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg as a support entity for Spanish companies interested in defending their interests in the European Union.

Conference «Supporting the Next IPCEI European Champions in Solar Industry»

On Monday 21st November, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg organised the conference “Supporting the Next IPCEI European Champions in Solar Industry”, in collaboration with the Chamber’s member company Schuman Associates. More than 20 companies from the solar and photovoltaic energy sector from all over Europe participated in the conference, that took place online.

The key speakers were Víctor Marcos, Director of Renewable Energies at the Spanish Government’s Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE); Demos Spatharis, Head of Unit IPCEI, Environment and Innovation at the European Commission’s Directorate for Competition; Žygimantas Vaičiūnas, Executive Policy Advisor at the European Solar Manufacturing Council; and Anca Wlizlo, Head of Investment, Financing and Strategic Consulting (specialised in IPCEI, H2 and PV projects) at Schuman Associates.

To open the conference, Víctor Marcos explained how the project would fit into component 3 of the Recovery Plan (Just and Inclusive Energy Transition), talked about the Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation (PERTE) for renewable energies and the importance of the EU Solar Strategy and the REPowerEU Plan, as well as Spain’s growing role in the solar and photovoltaic sector.

Characteristics

Demos Spatharis then detailed, from a more technical perspective, the process of approval by the European Commission of an IPCEI, referring to past projects and their characteristics, with particular emphasis on meeting the requirements of transparency, ambition, competitiveness, and cross-border cooperation.

Later, Žygimantas Vaičiūnas explained the position of the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) on the IPCEI PV, discussing the key objectives of the project, the possibilities for its financing, its timeframe, as well as the main challenges. In addition, Vaičiūnas mentioned existing projects in the PV sector.

Finally, Anca Wlizlo focused on the steps to be taken to prepare the proposal to set up the photovoltaic IPCEI, explaining the importance of the project and listing the different points to be taken into account: ambition, innovation, cooperation and dissemination.

At the end of the conference, participants had the opportunity to ask questions and share their interests and opinions with the four speakers.

In memoriam – José Gracia Barba

Last Saturday, 19 November, José Gracia Barba, member of the Board of Directors of our Chamber, unexpectedly passed away.

Three days earlier he attended the event organised with President Jean-Claude Juncker.

Ingenious, generous, friendly, and witty as always, nothing made us think about the outcome.

He always wanted to be known as “Pitu” and, to our very dear Pitu, goes our tribute.

It is difficult to use the past when writing these lines. The imprint of his presence in the Chamber’s life will live on. Undoubtedly.

Kindness, generosity, intelligence, commitment. His service to Spain, from his position as administrator of our Chamber, highlights these qualities.

In 2012, he played a decisive role in integrating the (private) Spanish Chamber in Luxembourg into the current Official Chamber, and from 2017 to 2020 he was its Vice-President for the Grand Duchy.

Pitu was an Industrial Engineer. His professional experience led him to be part of different companies, among them Inespal (Empresa Nacional del Aluminio), before starting his career on his own.

Since 1995, Gracia Barba had developed different projects in the financial and energy sector, holding various positions in companies such as EUROSIGMA, Metrovacesa, Gecina, CTI, or Banco Pastor. He currently held the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of EBN (Banco de Negocios S.A.).

“Death is not real when the deed of life has been well done”, said the Cuban philosopher and poet José Martí. This quote becomes a reality in the person of Pitu.

Margarita, Pitu’s support, has our affection and love. With her, Pitu remains among us.

Dear Pitu, thank you for everything.

Transnational Consortium Meeting of the European project DGVET held in GRAZ, Austria

Last 8th and 9th of November took place in Graz, Austria, the Transnational Consortium Meeting of the European project DG VET, an Erasmus+ initiative coordinated by the Chamber.

The aim of the meeting was to present the overview of the project performance achieved until November 2022. and the Consortium has started to plan the next months ahead of the programme.

The meeting was held in a hybrid format and made it possible to create proficient links and confirm an atmosphere of trust that strengthens the collaboration amongst the partners.

DG VET is a 24-month project which aims to develop innovative training material and methodology, together with an online learning platform to support the development of marketable digital and green skills of NEET youth from rural areas to empower their employability, especially women between 18 and 30 years old.

DG-VET project partners recognize the important contribution of the Digital and Green Economy (DaGE) sectors to creating job opportunities for young people living in rural areas.

The Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg is responsible for the coordination of this initiative founded y the European Union.

We want to specially thank our colleague partner Martin Moser from LEVILO, Austria who presented throughout the meeting enhancing a cheerful atmosphere.

For more information, please contact:

Andrea Galante, Project manager (dgvet@e-camara.com).

Luncheon-debate with Jean-Claude Juncker, former President of the European Commission

Last Tuesday 15 November, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg held a new luncheon-debate sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada, in which the former Prime Minister of Luxembourg and former President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, spoke on “The future of the EU in the face of tomorrow’s uncertainties”.

The presentation began with the introduction of Pablo López-Álvarez, President of the Chamber, who thanked the participants for their attendance and gave a biographical review of Juncker. Afterwards, after the intervention of Fernando Valenzuela, Chief Financial Officer of RBC, Juncker took the floor. He spoke about the different challenges that the Europe of the future will have to face, where challenges such as climate change, the war in Ukraine and the situation with Putin, inflation, Brexit, or those derived from the pandemic stand out. He also attached great importance to international trade, as well as the treaties with Canada and the Mercosur countries.

The presentation continued with a round of questions and answers, where the participants were able to ask Juncker about issues such as the political and fiscal reforms that the EU will have to face, how the EU will have to position itself in the face of the US-China trade war, or what role Spain will have in its future presidency of the EU vis-à-vis the rest of the world.

From the Chamber, we want to express our special thanks to the winery Pradorey blanco, to RBC, and to all the attendees, who made this lunch-debate a very special one.

 

Interview to Izaskun Bernal, Meaningful Changes

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Three Spanish companies participate in an informative journey on the investment opportunities in Brussels

On Tuesday, 8th of November, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg attended an informative journey of Brussels and the existing investment opportunities in the region for foreign companies, which took place in the premises of hub.brussels, in the framework of the Cleantech Forum Europe event.

These presentations were addressed to innovative Spanish companies that offer technological solutions to environmental and climate challenges around the world. The event gathered consultants, tax advisors and lawyers specialized in the creation of companies in Belgium, such as Yves Houbion, from OAK Law, member of the Chamber, and Emmanuel de Beughem, head of the investment department at hub.brussels.

The three Spanish companies that participated were Sens Solutions, Teimas and Blue Room Innovation. Later, they had the opportunity to enjoy the organised visits to the sustainable building of Bruxelles Environement and the startups incubator GreenBiz.

The three Spanish companies then participated in the Cleantech Forum Europe, a unique event held this year in Brussels from the 8th to the 11th of November. Thanks to the Chamber’s collaboration with hub.brussels, these SMEs were invited to participate in the three-day Cleantech conferences, which aimed to connect top leaders and investors with a new generation of companies around the theme “From commitments to actions: the sprint to zero net emissions”.