Interview with Sílvia Paneque i Sureda, Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition

16 Jan Interview with Sílvia Paneque i Sureda, Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition

How does the recent election signal a shift toward change and unity in the region?

Recent votes have shown citizens want the government to commit to specific challenges regarding the region’s upcoming transformation. Major hurdles for Catalonia include the energy transition and the impact of climate change on the Mediterranean. There are long waiting lists in the healthcare sector and data indicates we have a long way to go to improve our education sector. We believe the broad social majority wants a government focused on addressing these challenges and strengthening its leadership. Unity is important; Catalonia has shown the best version of itself when a significant amount of the population has felt connected to a project. This was exemplified during the Barcelona Olympics, which saw national mobilization and had a huge impact on the region’s economy. We require social cohesion to initiate reforms and remain a leader in Spain and Europe.

The council has several key priorities. To involve the will of the people, we need to address the housing issue. We must also address challenges related to water and energy. It is unreasonable that Catalonia has spent two years relying on rainfall and suffering from droughts without the necessary infrastructure to address water challenges. Housing, energy, water and mobility are our main challenges. The government is confident that Catalonia — through collaboration with industry — has all the elements it needs to succeed. The government is committed to long-term policy development. For example, our energy goals are tied to 2030 and 2050, and our objective of establishing a closed water cycle aligns with our 2030 targets. However, we also need to focus on short-term policies to address current issues and provide immediate solutions. By 2025, we have planned investments to activate many initiatives.

What main challenges does the government face in addressing Catalonia’s housing crisis in 2025?

The housing crisis is complicated and will take many years to solve. The main problem in Catalonia is the lack of public housing stock. We are currently at 1.7% of total public housing while we should be at 15%. This has resulted from many years without investments in proper housing policies. Moving forward, we have committed to two main goals: building new public homes and turning policies into structural measures. In Catalonia, many families allocate more than 80% of their income to maintaining their housing, which is unsustainable. We aim to construct 50,000 new affordable rental homes and have allocated a budget of $1.15 billion to achieve this aim. The autonomous community of Catalonia plans to allocate the most economic resources to housing policies in Spain. We have approved the Territorial Sectoral Housing Plan, which defines the percentage of housing that must be included in the public stock for each city. This plan gives us a 20-year perspective on policies, resources and housing required to make rent affordable and address vulnerabilities.

What actions is Catalonia taking to achieve its goal of sourcing 50% of its energy from renewables by 2030?

In Catalonia we face a contradictory situation. We are an industrial region that faces a necessary green transition. We must ensure we generate green energy, including solar, wind and biogas. While the region has always been a leader in Spain and Europe regarding energy, we are currently far from our 2030 target and need to speed up the required processes. We have projects waiting in line to reach our goal but must improve administrative procedures to speed up developments. The Territorial Sectorial Plan for the Implementation of Renewables program ensures that Catalonia is able to properly install solar and wind parks. There exists resistance in some areas due to changes in the landscape. We need to organize ourselves in line with different territories to address concerns. The energy transition in Catalonia is essential in combating climate change, decarbonizing the economy and moving away from fossil fuels. If we do not generate renewable energy, we will cease to be attractive for investments and industrial activity. Our roadmap outlines environmental, economic and social objectives and is expected to bring necessary investments to Catalonia’s less populated areas.

What efforts is the government making beyond renewables to lower the region’s carbon footprint?

We will be the first autonomous community to approve carbon budgets. This helps us determine how much annual emissions we can allow in Catalonia to meet our 2030 and 2050 climate neutrality and zero-emission targets. In Catalonia, the three main sectors contributing to carbon dioxide emissions are industry, mobility and energy generation. Efforts to transition industry such as electrification have had the largest impact, but there is significant potential for improvement. The mobility sector also plays a fundamental role, with recent large initiatives to promote electric fleets and move away from fossil fuels. Rodalies de Catalunya, our regional train network, is currently the most ecological option. Energy generation is also one of the main contributors to carbon dioxide emissions, and we remain committed to meeting 50% of our energy demand through renewable sources.

How important is the digitization of government processes in reducing bureaucratic barriers?

The government faces a significant challenge in streamlining processes. Currently, the presidency is making this a top issue and is working with experts to analyze all procedures, especially those related to citizens and businesses. We set this task from the beginning, with a 10-month timeline to present specific measures. For example, it currently takes 60 months to pass from having a plot of land to build on to when the keys are handed over. This is unacceptable and addressing this is a top priority. We are developing acceleration projects in specific areas and applying artificial intelligence (AI) and automation to cut processes down to hours instead of months. We are currently using AI in environmental reports to standardize processes and cut the need for technical staff, which is saving 3,000 hours of technical work annually. We are also applying AI for faster execution of infrastructure projects such as hospitals, schools and roads.

What priority is the current government giving to attracting foreign direct investment into Catalonia?

The government is heavily committed to attracting investments. We need to promote energy and water to create a favorable investment environment. Catalonia is a gateway to Europe. We have a geographically advantageous position and infrastructure that connects us to the continent such as the Mediterranean Corridor and the Barcelona-El Prat Airport. The ports of Barcelona and Tarragona are also key gateways for goods from the West, the East and China, and strengthening these entry points is crucial to our success. Catalonia is both outward-facing in our connective elements and inward-facing in our focus on improving local infrastructure such as trains, roads and housing. These combined elements make the region highly attractive to intercontinental and international players. The government is also focused on establishing public-private collaborations to take on global challenges. We are open to working with the private sector and aligning our efforts, specifically in the realm of climate change and the energy transition. Attracting green industry is essential in a global industrial context.