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France, which relies on its aging nuclear fleet to generate electricity, is leading a campaign to count hydrogen made using nuclear power -- known as "red" hydrogen -- in the EU's new renewable energy targets, which currently focus on green hydrogen made using electricity from renewable sources. After much foot-dragging, French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to the hydrogen pipeline between Barcelona and Marseille in October, a deal formalised at a summit with Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez in Barcelona in January. In Madrid, officials say the row is a "misunderstanding" and they are willing to be flexible on red hydrogen in other legislation such as the gas market directive, but not in the renewables bill. "Red hydrogen cannot be renewable because nuclear is not an energy that can be considered as such. France wants this to include its red hydrogen but it must first be designated as renewable.

[1/3] The border fence between Morocco and Spain's north African enclave Melilla is seen along a road, December 11, 2014. Bilateral trade rose to 17 billion euros in 2022, making Spain Morocco's biggest trade partner. The disputes underscore Spain's dependence on Morocco to control migration by Moroccans and sub-Saharan Africans seeking to cross the European Union's southernmost border. Some observers say the drop in migration could prove temporary and that Spain remains too dependent on Morocco. For a sustained fall in migration, Spain needs more cooperation with Morocco when it comes to repatriating illegal Moroccan migrants, said Blanca Garces, senior researcher in migration at the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs.

☆ Afghan women prosecutors once seen as symbols of democracy find asylum in Spain
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] Afghan prosecutor S.M., who left her 4 years old daughter with her grandmother in Afghanistan while escaping to Peshawar, looks down in Islamabad, Pakistan, September 22, 2022. "Most Afghan women and girls that remain in Afghanistan don't have the right to study, to have a social life or even go to a beauty salon," Sharar said. due to fears over her safety and who specialised in gender violence and violence against children said, "I was the only female prosecutor in the province... The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said it was not in a position to comment on specific cases. "The Government of Pakistan has not agreed to recognise newly arriving Afghans as refugees," UNHCR said in a statement.

[1/3] Migrants run towards the fence separating Morocco from Spain, after thousands of migrants swam across the border, in Ceuta, Spain, May 19, 2021. Spanish exports to Algeria fell 41% to 1 billion euros ($1.09 billion) in the January-November 2022 period compared with a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Industry. State-owned railway operators Renfe and Adif are working with their Moroccan counterpart to develop new train lines, which could mean 6 billion euros of business. A joint declaration made no mention of Spain's enclaves in Morocco although it reiterated Spain's new position on Western Sahara. Both countries agreed to cooperate on repatriations of illegal migrants.

In recent years some euro zone countries have sought to rein in temporary contracts to promote stable jobs. It also plans to reduce the labour tax costs to employers of temporary contracts, which were raised in 2018. The reform reversed the easy hire-and-fire regime put in place after the sovereign debt crisis a decade ago by abolishing most forms of temporary contracts. Within that total, the number of temporary workers has jumped by 25% from 2.4 million to 3.0 million. Stable contracts should be the norm, not the exception," she said.

☆ Spain's economy grew 5.5% in 2022 after faster-than-expected last quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Belén Carreño | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Spain's gross domestic product grew a faster-than-expected 5.5% in 2022 as the country avoided a recession in the final quarter despite fears of a global slowdown, official data showed on Friday. Spain's GDP grew 0.2% in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter and 2.7% from the same quarter in 2021, the National Statistics Institute said on Friday. The final GDP data beat both the original official forecast for the year, which was 4.5%, and the 5% anticipated by Prime Minister in late 2022. Exports, one of the driving forces of the Spanish economy in 2022, came to a screeching halt in the fourth quarter as the global economy slowed. The Spanish economy shrunk 11.3% in 2020 when the pandemic shut down tourism, and the economy has not yet fully recovered to pre-Covid levels.

☆ Spain says it is open to sending Leopard tanks to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Belén Carreño | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Spain's defence minister said on Wednesday Madrid was open to providing Ukraine with German-made Leopard 2 tanks, after Germany agreed to send the tanks and said NATO allies could do the same. Spain has 108 2A4 tanks, according to security and defence researcher Felix Arteaga of the Elcano think-tank. In late 2022, Spain delivered its largest package of defence materiel for Ukraine to date, sending to the logistics hub in Poland heavy weapons, long-range and anti-tank ammunition. Spain has sent four U.S.-made HAWK air defence systems and has committed to sending two more. It is also offering medical treatment to wounded Ukrainian soldiers, and air defence training at its air base in Toledo.

☆ At least one dead, several injured in machete attack at southern Spain churches
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( David Latona | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] A body covered in thermal blanket is seen at the scene of a stabbing incident at a church in Algeciras, Spain January 25, 2023 in this screen grab from a video. The man attacked clergymen at two different churches - San Isidro and Nuestra Senora de La Palma, around 300 metres (1,000 feet) apart - just after 8pm on Wednesday evening in downtown Algeciras, a spokesperson for the city said. Jose Ignacio Landaluce, the mayor of Algeciras, has declared a day of mourning in the city for Thursday and a rally outside Nuestra Senora de La Palma church at midday. Earlier on Wednesday, two people were killed and several others injured when a 33-year-old stateless Palestinian man attacked them with a knife on a regional train travelling between Kiel and Hamburg in northern Germany, authorities said. Reporting by David Latona, Belén Carreño and Aislinn Laing; Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Spanish police arrest man suspected in 2022 parcel-bomb case
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Vincent West | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] Spanish police officers guard outside a building after the arrest of a man suspected of being the sender of letter-bombs in November and December to the Ukrainian and U.S. embassies and several institutions in Spain, in Miranda de Ebro, Spain January 25, 2023. The man was detained in the northern town of Miranda de Ebro, and police searched his home. The suspect is a retired Spanish citizen with the initials P.G.P. The man used to work for the town hall of the Basque capital Vitoria-Gasteiz before retiring in 2013, a city spokesperson said. Spanish officials have declined to comment on the report, while a senior judicial source denied having knowledge of such a line of investigation.

☆ EU's Borrell: Europe prepared to provide heavy tanks to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The European Union's foreign policy said on Friday some European countries are prepared to send heavy tanks to Ukraine and he hoped a decision to provide them will be made at defence ministers' talks at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. NATO and defence leaders from about 50 countries were meeting on Friday at Ramstein, the latest in a series of arms-pledging conferences since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly 11 months ago. The main focus at the talks is on whether Germany will allow the re-export to Ukraine of its Leopard 2 tanks, which are used by armies across Europe. "I think Ukraine needs the combat arms and heavy tanks that it has asked for and some European countries are prepared to give and I hope that is the decision that is taken," he added. However, Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles, who is not attending the Ramstein talks, told reporters she did not expect any political decisions on tanks there.

The EU froze funds earmarked for Hungary and Poland over their nationalist governments' track record of undercutting liberal democratic rules. Portugal had disbursed 1.4 billion euros, or 8.5% of the total recovery funds assigned to it, to project promoters by the end of 2022. Romania and Portugal are the two countries pushing hardest to extend the 2026 deadline and Spain and other Eastern European countries are supporting their demands, a source with knowledge of the negotiations said. Some countries are devising workarounds for projects that are particularly important and look like they are unlikely to meet the deadline, said a source. This would imply budgeting and allocating funds before the projects have been commissioned in order to meet the 2026 deadline, the person said.

☆ Spain's 12-month inflation slows down again in December to 5.8%
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Still, core inflation, which strips out volatile fresh food and energy prices, was at 6.9% year-on-year, higher than the 6.3% recorded a month ago, the INE data showed. In November, Spain had the lowest inflation in the 27-member European Union with a rate of 6.7%, after peaking in July at around 11%. Core inflation is taking longer to come down because it took longer to go up," Economy Minister Nadia Calviño said in an interview with broadcaster SER. Spain's European Union-harmonised 12-month inflation was 5.6%, down from 6.7% in November and below the 6.0% expectation from analysts polled by Reuters. Reporting by Joanna Jonczyk-Gwizdala and Belén Carreño, Editing by David Latona and Andrei KhalipOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Spain announces $10.6 bln package to ease inflation pain
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Spain on Tuesday announced 10 billion euros ($10.65 billion) worth of measures to ease the pain of inflation in the third major package this year, bringing total aid to 45 billion euros since early 2022. Spain, like other European countries, has been grappling with a cost-of-living crisis exacerbated by the impact of the war in Ukraine on energy prices. The package follows similar announcements in March and June that included direct aid, tax cuts, soft loans and rental controls. Inflation for the past 12 months slowed to 6.7% in November, the lowest rate in the 27-country EU bloc. Slowing inflation has been aided by a sharp fall in electricity prices, which decreased by 22.4% from a year earlier in November.

While the error margins are unlikely to distort euro inflation in the long-term, economists say they could warp inflation expectations if not addressed, at a time when the European Central Bank is raising rates aggressively to tame double-digit inflation. As falling energy prices will take time to be reflected in household contracts, the current methodology will underestimate inflation when energy prices fall, CBS said. More volatility could follow when Germany introduces a cap on energy prices in March, that will also cut costs for January and February retroactively, he said. Eurostat has said that only measures that have a direct impact on energy prices, known to consumers before they purchase the energy, should reflect in inflation calculations. FEEDTHROUGH RISKSWith inflation at 10%, the calculation issues are unlikely to significantly impact the aggregate euro zone inflation print.

☆ Spain approves banking tax, excludes most foreign bank units
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The banking tax imposes a 4.8% charge on banks' net interest income and net commissions above a threshold of 800 million euros ($849 million). For energy companies with a turnover of at least 1 billion euros, excluding the domestic regulated business and foreign operations, the rate is 1.2%. Lenders and companies have opposed both the bank and energy taxes, and have threatened to challenge the new tax regime in court. The vast majority of Spanish units of foreign banks, such as Deutsche Bank , will not be taxed as opposed to a previous version of the draft that was passed in November. The energy proposal was meant to raise 4 billion euros but the Bank of Spain recently estimated it would just raise 2 billion euros after their domestic regulated activities and foreign operations were left out of the levy.

☆ Analysis: Italy's rates clash with ECB a sign of things to come for euro zone
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Francesco Canepa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Summary Euro zone governments offering cost-of-living subsidiesECB has warned it won't compensate for "policy errors"Clashes seen widening beyond ItalyFRANKFURT, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Attacks by Italy's new government on the European Central Bank over its plans to raise borrowing costs may be a sign of things to come for a euro zone struggling with inflation and debt. It also showed the ECB did not fear penalising the most indebted of the 19 euro zone countries, Italy among them, which tend to see their borrowing costs rise disproportionately when credit becomes more expensive. "The ECB is clearly ready to take risks with fragmentation in the euro area," Gilles Moec, chief economist at AXA Investment Managers, said. With bigger deficits to refinance and the ECB raising interest rates while also winding down its bond purchases, markets have pushed up yields across the euro zone and particularly for the weakest borrowers, such as Italy. But the ECB has been clear it won't be used to rescue countries that have made imprudent "policy errors".

The Spanish government estimates that the EU grants and loans will on average add 2.6 percentage points to gross domestic product annually through 2031. Calvino said the EU soft loans would be channelled through state-linked investment vehicles so as not to inflate Spain's debt burden. In total, Spain is seeking to mobilise 160 billion euros. It has so far received 31 billion euros from the pandemic package, deploying around 22 billion, Calvino said. However, a recent study by consultants EY and the ESADE business school estimated that just 9.3 billion euros had reached the real economy.

☆ Youth in Spain see jobs gain after years of instability
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Belén Carreño | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Youth unemployment rates that reached more than 55% in the years after the financial crisis fell to 31% in the third quarter - against an overall unemployment rate of 12.6%, according to the National Statistics Office, INE. Youth unemployment is a chronic problem in southern European countries. Greece, whose rates of youth unemployment are similar to Spain's, wants to reduce its youth unemployment rate to 18% by 2030 and is introducing subsidies for pension and health fund costs to reduce labour costs, as well as special training programmes. Previously, employers used temporary contracts as a safety net in times of crisis. Before the labour reform, the rate of temporary contracts, which in the last decade has been around 25% of all jobs, resulted in a high turnover of jobs, inflating the overall unemployment rate.

☆ Hydrogen pipeline from Spain to France to cost 2.5 bln euros, Spanish PM Sanchez says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Belén Carreño | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ALICANTE, Spain, Dec 9 (Reuters) - An underwater pipeline to carry green hydrogen between Spain and France will cost about 2.5 billion euros ($2.64 billion), Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Friday, adding that he hoped the European Union would partly fund the project. An additional pipeline connecting Spain and Portugal will cost 300 million euros, a Spanish source said. The undersea section will be known as BarMar, while the entire hydrogen corridor connecting Spain and Portugal to France will be called H2MED, Sanchez confirmed. Sanchez said that France, Spain and Portugal would apply for EU funds to pay for up to 50% of H2MED's cost. "If you already have an overland pipeline why build an undersea pipeline?"

REUTERS/Violeta Santos MouraCompanies Enagas SA FollowBARCELONA/LISBON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - An underwater pipeline to carry green hydrogen between Barcelona and Marseille will cost around 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion), according to preliminary estimates of the project agreed between Spain, Portugal and France, two sources told Reuters. Spain and Portugal aim to become clean hydrogen hubs and net energy exporters, causing tensions with France which plans to produce its own hydrogen using nuclear energy. The pipeline will only carry hydrogen in order to meet EU funding criteria, though "improvements" could be made in future to allow for some gas, a Spanish government source said. As a result, the industry source said, they have pushed their four grid operators to "speed up technical studies, potential pipeline layouts and cost assessments". "If you already have an overland pipeline why build an undersea pipeline?"

☆ Spain to lend Airbus 2.14 bln euros for miltary programmes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Spain will lend Airbus (AIR.PA) 2.14 billion euros ($2.26 billion) to help the company to develop its military drone and helicopter programmes in the country, Industry Minister Reyes Maroto said on Monday. The two multi-year loans include 1.43 billion euros for Airbus Defence and Space as part of the European Union's military drone development programme, an Industry Ministry statement said. An additional 707 million euros will be lent to Airbus Helicopters to help to modernise the Tiger helicopter fleets of Spain and France within a bilateral programme. The ministry said the EUROMALE RPAS drone development programme, which is scheduled to begin deliveries in 2028, is expected to generate 3,000 jobs a year in Spain over the next 15 years. ($1 = 0.9458 euros)Reporting by Belen Carreno Writing by David Latona Editing by Inti Landauro and David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Spanish police believe origin of letter bombs was city of Valladolid
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Spanish police said six letter bombs sent to high profile targets in recent days appeared to have been posted from the northern city of Valladolid, a source close to the investigation told Reuters on Saturday. The devices were sent to targets including Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, government offices, a European Union satellite company and the U.S. Embassy between Nov. 24 and Dec. 2. Most were defused, although an employee at the Ukrainian embassy was slightly injured when one of the devices ignited. No person has been identified as the sender of the packets, said the source, who asked not to be named in order to discuss the investigation. Reporting by Graham Keeley, additional rpeorting by Belen Carreno; Editing by Frank Jack DanielOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Third suspected letter-bomb found at Spanish air force base
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/7] A ambulance is seen coming out of the Air Force base of Torrejon de Ardoz after a suspected explosive device hidden in an envelope was mailed to the base, in the wake of two others sent to targets connected to Spanish support of Ukraine, amidst Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, outside Madrid, Spain December 1, 2022. REUTERS/Violeta Santos MouraMADRID, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Spanish security forces found a third suspected explosive device hidden in an envelope mailed to a European Union satellite centre located at an air force base in Torrejon de Ardoz, outside Madrid, the defence ministry said on Thursday. After scanning the envelope by X-ray, air force security officers determined it contained "a mechanism", the ministry statement said. The satellite centre supports the EU's common foreign and security policy by gathering information from space intelligence devices, according to its website. After the first incident, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba ordered all of Kyiv's embassies abroad to "urgently" strengthen security and urged Spain to investigate the attack, a Ukrainian ministry spokesperson said.

☆ Letter bomb injures one at Ukraine's Madrid embassy, Kyiv ramps up security
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Police stands outside of Ukrainian embassy after, Spanish police said, blast at embassy building injured one employee while handling a letter, in Madrid, Spain November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Juan MedinaMADRID/KYIV, Nov 30 (Reuters) - A security officer at Ukraine's embassy in Madrid was injured when he opened a letter bomb addressed to the ambassador on Wednesday, and Kyiv ordered a bolstering of security at all its representative offices abroad. The security officer suffered light injuries and went under his own steam to hospital for treatment, Spanish government official Mercedes Gonzalez told broadcaster Telemadrid. The residential area surrounding the embassy in northwestern Madrid was cordoned off and a bomb disposal unit was deployed to the scene. Reuters footage showed scores of police officers, armed with assault rifles and blocking roads with vans, in the neighbourhood around the embassy.

☆ Ukraine ramps up security at diplomatic missions after blast at embassy in Spain
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Police stands outside of Ukrainian embassy after, Spanish police said, blast at embassy building injured one employee while handling a letter, in Madrid, Spain November 30, 2022. REUTERS/Juan MedinaMADRID/KYIV, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Ukraine on Wednesday ramped up security at its embassies abroad after Spanish police and government said an employee at the Ukrainian embassy in Madrid was injured opening a letter bomb. Ukraine's Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba has ordered all Ukrainian embassies abroad to "urgently" strengthen their security, according to a statement from Ukraine's foreign ministry. An officer at Ukraine's embassy to Spain declined to comment. The residential area surrounding the embassy in northwestern Madrid has been cordoned off and a bomb disposal unit is deployed at the scene, state broadcaster TVE reported.

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