Carlos Torres Vila at Davos: “Europe cannot fall behind and must foster investments for decarbonization”
BBVA Chair Carlos Torres Vila said at Davos that Europe must establish adequate mechanisms and incentives to promote investments for decarbonization.” In this regard, he added that “Europe cannot fall behind.” In his opinion, in order for decarbonization technologies to grow and be profitable, “we need a legislative, regulatory and supervisory framework that offers adequate incentives like what is already underway in countries like the U.S.”
Press kit - Davos 2023
Carlos Torres Vila stressed that cooperation in a fragmented world, the slogan for this year’s edition of Davos, is also “fundamental to face humanity’s greatest challenge: decarbonization.” The BBVA Chair considers this race against global warming “non-negotiable” and feels “it is possible to achieve”. To do so, from his perspective, two prerequisites must be met.
The first prerequisite is that “the governments of developed countries have to step up their financial support for emerging countries so that they can join the decarbonization race. And that is key because without them, we will not be able to achieve a planet free of emissions.”
Second, “the investment needed for the economy to function without emissions must be attractive, must be economically viable, and profitable,” Carlos Torres Vila said. In this regard, investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency and electric vehicles “are already profitable alternatives over fossil fuels for families and businesses.” However, most activities - “between 60 percent to 70 percent- do not yet have an emission-free version that is economically viable.”
In the words of the BBVA Chair, “We are witnessing an unprecedented wave of innovation, creating solutions to complex problems,” such as emission-free cement and steel; CO2 capture; new ways of power generation without emissions, such as nuclear fusion.
“BBVA is already investing in cutting-edge technologies through venture capital funds like Hy24 and Lowercarbon, which allows us to achieve our fundamental purpose of advising and financing our clients in their transition toward a more sustainable and inclusive future,” he concluded.