Year - 2025
Lifetime Achievement for the Advancement of Renewables
Mr. Ignacio Galan
Writer - TexasMonthly
Ignacio Galán is a prominent Spanish businessman currently serving as the Executive Chairman of Iberdrola, a leading multinational energy company. He is also Chairman of ScottishPower, AVANGRID, and Neoenergia, the country subholding companies of the Iberdrola Group in the UK, the US, and Brazil, respectively.
Galán holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from the ICAI School of Engineering at the Pontifical University of Comillas in Madrid. He has received honorary doctorates from the Universities of Edinburgh and Strathclyde in the UK, and from the University of Salamanca and Pontificia Comillas in Spain.
He began his career in the early 1970s at Sociedad Española del Acumulador Tudor, where he gained valuable experience in the energy sector. In 1990, he played a pivotal role in founding Industria de Turbopropulsores (ITP), demonstrating his entrepreneurial spirit and leadership capabilities. In 2001, Galán joined Iberdrola as Executive Vice President and CEO, and by 2006 he had ascended to the position of Executive Chairman.
Since joining Iberdrola, his vision for international expansion and the need for electrification through renewable energies, networks, and energy storage have transformed the company into one of the largest in the global energy sector. Today, Iberdrola operates in dozens of countries—including the United States, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Spain, Germany, Portugal, France, Italy, and Australia—supplying energy to more than 100 million people worldwide.
Galán’s pioneering vision of electrification through smart grids and renewable energy has not only transformed Iberdrola but also shaped the transition of the global energy industry towards a more secure, competitive, efficient, and sustainable system. His forward-thinking leadership has turned Iberdrola into a multinational clean energy powerhouse, setting the standard for sustainability and innovation in the sector.
His leadership has earned him international acclaim. In 2019, Harvard Business Review recognised him as one of the top five CEOs globally and the foremost in the utilities sector. In 2023, Time magazine included him in its TIME100 Climate List, highlighting him as one of the most influential leaders driving business climate action. Under Galán’s leadership, Iberdrola has transformed from a traditional Spanish utility provider into one of the world’s largest renewable energy companies.
Beyond Iberdrola, Galán remains an influential voice in academia and policymaking. He serves on the Presidential Advisory Board of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and chairs the Social Council of the University of Salamanca.
Ignacio Galán is a partner of the World Economic Forum (Davos) and a member of the European Round Table for Industry (ERT), the JP Morgan International Council, and the UNICEF Generation Unlimited Global Leadership Council.
His pioneering vision and successful leadership at Iberdrola have positioned the company as a leader in a sector poised for extraordinary growth in the coming years, driven by massive investments in power generation, electricity grids, and energy storage to meet increasing global power demand.
In Galán’s view, this transformation represents the fastest and most effective route to accelerate economic and social development—improving energy security and promoting efficiency, affordability, competitiveness, and sustainability.