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ENERGY

Spain limits air conditioning in public buildings to save energy

Air conditioning in public buildings in Spain must be turned down in the summer under new rules published on Thursday as part of measures to reduce Europe's reliance on Russian energy.

Spain limits air conditioning in public buildings to save energy
People wait in line at a government employment office in the center of Madrid on a hot June day. Photo: Dominique Faget/AFP

Office air conditioning should be set no lower than 27 Celsius (80.6 Fahrenheit) during the warmest months of the year, according to a government decree on energy efficiency.

Temperatures often rise above 40 Celsius in the summer across Spain.

During the winter offices, will not be heated beyond a maximum of 19 Celsius.

These measures will apply “whenever it is technically possible,” the decree said.

The decree includes greater use of working from home for civil servants, increased use of energy-efficient lighting and mass installation of solar panels on the roofs of public buildings.

The plan, part of an EU-wide effort to cut dependence on Russian gas and oil, calls for the installation of more bicycle parking spots at government office to encourage public workers to cycle to work.

The European Commission published plans on Tuesday to cut EU dependency on Russian gas by two-thirds this year and end its reliance on Russian supplies of the fuel before 2030.

Italy in April also announced plans to turn down air conditioning at public buildings to save energy this summer.

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ECONOMY

Madrid approves sale of Vodafone’s Spanish unit

Spain's government has approved the sale of British mobile phone giant Vodafone's Spanish division to investment fund Zegona for up to €5.0 billion.

Madrid approves sale of Vodafone's Spanish unit

Digital Transformation Minister José Luis Escrivá said Madrid had given the green light because the London-based fund has committed to “a very substantial investment plan in the telecommunications sector over the medium term, in both fixed and mobile telephony”.

Vodafone announced in October that it had reached a deal to sell its Spanish business to Zegona, which was founded by two former Virgin Media executives, as part of its efforts to streamline its European operations under pressure from shareholders.

Under the terms of the deal the investment fund will pay Vodafone €4.1 billion ($4.4 billion) in cash, and up to 900 million shares in Zegona, which is listed in London.

The deal is expected to be completed at the end of May, Vodafone said in a statement.

The company said it now plants to start a €500-million share buyback programme on May 15th as part of its plans to return €2.0 billion to shareholders over 12 months.

In a further streamlining, Vodafone in June agreed to merge its British operations with Three UK, owned by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, to create Britain’s biggest operator with 27 million customers and accelerate rollout of faster 5G connectivity.

The group, which has more than 300 million mobile customers in Europe and Africa, is heavily focused on accelerating rollout of 5G in the UK.

At the end of 2022, Vodafone unveiled a huge deal with investment firms GIP and KKR to form a joint venture that would maintain its majority stake in European masts division Vantage Towers.

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