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[1/2] "Junts x Catalunya" members raise up an "Estelada" flag (Catalan separatist flag) as they celebrate the results of the European Parliament elections in Barcelona, Spain, May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File PhotoBARCELONA/MADRID, July 26 (Reuters) - Spain may be heading for a repeat of Sunday's inconclusive election unless Catalan separatist parties compromise on their demands for an independence referendum in exchange for their support. After neither the right nor left bloc won enough seats to form a majority, Catalan separatist parties Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (ERC) and Junts have emerged as kingmakers. However, Sanchez, who rejects Catalan independence, has long said he opposes a referendum or an amnesty. INDEPENDENCE SUPPORT DECLININGEven if Sanchez were willing to concede, a referendum could prove difficult to implement.

Persons: Albert Gea, Esquerra, Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Junts, Carles Puigdemont, Ramon Tremosa, mignon, Tremosa, Josep Rius, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Feijoo, Mariano Rajoy, Joan Esculies, Isabel Rodriguez, Yolanda Diaz, Diaz, Jaume Asens, Puigdemont, Wayne Griffiths, Rius, Pedro Sanchez's, Joan Faus, Belen Carreno, Charlie Devereux, Aislinn Laing, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, ERC, Junts, Sanchez's Socialists, Socialists, European Union, People's Party, Socialist, Monday, Volkswagen's, SEAT, Catalans, Vox, Thomson Locations: Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain, BARCELONA, MADRID, Catalan, Catalonia, Belgium, Socialist, Madrid, Volkswagen's Barcelona, Spanish

☆ Amid risk of stalling in EV race, Spain's rebooted aid scheme gets warm reception
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Joan Faus | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Madrid will launch a new, more flexible version of the PERTE scheme around July, worth 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) after last year's initial funding round flopped, with only 27% of an earmarked 2.9 billion euros allocated. Stellantis already manufactures EVs in Spain and received 67 million euros from the first PERTE, but could request more funds to boost production. Griffiths said using the EU funds is "essential" for Spain's future as some investments would otherwise be non-viable. Unlike Germany, Europe's leading car producer, Spain lacks a domestic manufacturer to champion the EV cause. In last year's PERTE round, VW-SEAT received the highest payout, of 357 million euros, but had hoped for more.

☆ VW aims to produce 3 mln small EV cars in 2025-2030 in Spain, SEAT chief says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Imelda MedinaBARCELONA, March 22 (Reuters) - German carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) plans to produce 3 million small electric vehicles at its two plants in Spain between 2025 and 2030, Wayne Griffiths, the chairman of VW's Spanish unit SEAT, said on Wednesday. The German car maker is pushing the electrification of its production and plans to build a battery plant in Spain. Griffiths said SEAT aims to assemble 500,000 electric cars a year in the medium-term at SEAT’s plant in Martorell, outside Barcelona. Not cutting jobs at the plant is SEAT's priority, he added. Reporting by Joan Faus and Inti Landauro; editing by Emma Pinedo and Jason Neely, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Auto lobby urges Spain to speed up vehicle electrification as sales lag
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Among the challenges the country's industry faces are weaker-than-expected electric vehicle (EV) sales, an ageing car fleet - which is stymieing emission reduction and safety goals - and a still-lacking charging infrastructure for EVs, Griffiths said. In 2022, about 78,000 plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and battery electric vehicles (BEV) were sold in Spain, far below the 120,000 required to meet current emission goals. Electric vehicles account for 9.2% of total auto sales, while the European Union average is over 20%. "Europe is splitting in two, and Spain is falling further and further behind leading countries" such as Germany or Portugal, Griffiths said. Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ SEAT-VW says to go ahead with Spanish e-car, battery project
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) Spanish unit SEAT will go ahead with a mega project to make electric vehicles and batteries after overcoming initial reservations about government subsidies, it said on Wednesday. The SEAT-led project, in which 60 other Volkswagen-linked companies will also take part, foresees an investment of 10 billion euros ($10.06 billion) to electrify Spain's auto industry and turn the country into a European hub for e-vehicle and battery production. The government said last month VW-SEAT would receive 397.4 million euros of the 877 million total in the first phase of the electric vehicle financing programme using EU pandemic recovery funds. Although it was the carmaker that received the largest allocation, SEAT initially said the funding was not sufficient. ($1 = 0.9939 euros)Reporting by Andrei Khalip and Jessica JonesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ VW's SEAT says Spain's subsidy for battery plant, EV production 'not sufficient'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Corina Pons | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Nov 3 (Reuters) - The chief of Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) Spanish unit SEAT said on Thursday the subsidies offered by Spanish authorities for a battery factory construction and electric vehicle production "is not sufficient", but voiced optimism about finding a solution. Speaking at a panel in Madrid, SEAT Chairman Wayne Griffiths said the solution, which he did not specify, has to be found within 10 days. "Spain is capable of making one of the best cars in the world," Griffiths said, highlighting the country's renewable energy capacity. However, he lamented the fact that the country had also one of the lowest shares of electric vehicles in Europe. Reporting by Corina Pons, writing by Joan Faus, editing by David Latona and Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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