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JOSÉ IGNACIO SÁNCHEZ GALÁN has been chosen the winner of the FCG International Economics Award 2008 by the Jury at a meeting held in Valladolid today under the chairmanship of Mr. José Manuel Vargas Gómez, member of the Board of Directors of Vocento.

The Jury in the category of Economics -made up by Mr. Óscar Campillo Madrigal, Editor of El Mundo Valladolid Newsaper; Mr. Antonio Catalán Díaz, President of AC Hotels; Mr. Julio Fermoso García, President of Caja Duero Savings Bank; Mr. Antonio Miguel Méndez Pozo, President of Promecal Communications Group; Mr. José Manuel Vargas Gómez, member of the Board of Directors of Vocento; Mr. Tomás Villanueva Rodríguez, 2^nd Vice-President and Minister of Economics and Employment of the Junta de Castilla y León [Castilla León Regional Government]- unanimously decided to award the prize to JOSÉ IGNACIO SÁNCHEZ GALÁN:

“Due to his decisive contribution to the internationalization and capitalization of IBERDROLA, under his control becoming one of the main companies of the IBEX 35 (the Spanish stock exchange index) and a symbol of the expansion of Spanish business in international markets; due to his audacity in innovation and in the development of renewable energies, which has made Iberdrola world leader in that field; due to his concern for the environment and the fulfilment of the Kyoto Protocol and his will to expand to and involve all regions in Spain in the development of clean energies.”

The members of the Jury decided in favor of the President of the Iberdrola Group, having studied the fourteen nominations which were received for this award from Bangladesh, England, Germany, India, Libya, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.

According to the conditions of the competition, “The FCG International Award for Economics is awarded to the person, group or institution whose economic, business, research or economic promotion activity has made a decisive contribution to improving the living conditions of a community, territory or the society as a whole and whose work and specific projects have had an underlying social concern.”

The Prize, an original piece crafted in 18 carat gold by Cristóbal Gabarrón, the artist whose name the Foundation bears, will be awarded on 10^th October next in the Calderón Theater in Valladolid (Spain) during a gala in which the Prizes will be given to the 9 award-winners, each in their corresponding category.

 Biography

José Ignacio Sánchez Galán received his degree in industrial engineering from the ICAI Advanced Industrial School of the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (Madrid, Spain). He also has a Diploma in Business Administration and in Foreign Trade from the ICADE School at the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas (Madrid, Spain) and a Diploma in General Business Administration and Foreign Trade from the School of Industrial Organization (EOI) of Madrid.

He has held several management posts on the Board of Sociedad Española del Acumulador Tudor, S.A. (now Grupo Exide). He has also been Managing Director for Industry at Turbo Propulsores, S.A. (ITP), President of the German Eurojet consortia, a member of the Board of Directors of Airtel Móvil (now Vodafone Spain) and a member of the Supervisory Board of Nutreco Holding N.V.

He is currently the President and CEO of Iberdrola S.A., President of Iberdrola Renovables, President of Scottish Power, President of Iberdrola Inmobiliaria, S.A. and he also chairs El Desafío Español, the company that manages the participation of the Spanish boat in the America’s Cup. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Page Ibérica and of the Bodegas Matarromera winery.

Among other organizations, he is a member of the following Patronages: Prince of Asturias Foundation, Cotec Foundation, Carolina Foundation, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao Foundation, Comillas-ICAI University Foundation, Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca Foundation, the University of Salamanca General Foundation and the Spain-United States Council. He is also a member of the Advisory Committee of the Prince of Asturias Chair of Science and Information Technology at the University of New Mexico (United States). He belongs to the Circle of Basque Business Leaders and the Circle of Business Leaders (Madrid), the Circle of Economics and the Association for the Progress of Management (APD), as well as to the American Management Association. He has also been a lecturer at the ICAI School of Industrial Engineering. He speaks English, French and Italian fluently.

Among other awards, he has obtained both the Award for the Best CEO in Investor Relations IR Magazine and the Award for the Best Top Executive of the European Utilities Sector three times consecutively, awarded by the Institutional Investor Research Group. The Platts Global Energy Awards (the “Oscars” of energy) have also paid tribute to his work as head of Iberdrola by giving the Company the awards for Energy Investor of the Year and Electricity Company of the Year in 2005 and, in 2006, also the Award for Best CEO of the Year.  In 2007, the BEB (Best of European Business) also gave him the Cross Border M&A Award, for the international takeover of Scottish Power.

More recently, in 2008 the European Business Leaders Awards gave him the Award for Best Environmental Practice and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United States named him Best Business Leader of the Year.

More information about the award-winner as well as his biography and photograph can be downloaded from the following websites:

www.fcginternationalawards.org