Josu Jon Imaz San Miguel is a politician, executive and scientist from Zumarraga,

Basque Autonomous Community Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous com ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, born in 1963. He is CEO of the oil company

Repsol Repsol S.A.
El Nuevo Herald, 2012-05-31Originally an init ...

. Doctor in

Chemical Sciences Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their com ...

from the

University of the Basque Country The University of the Basque Country (, ''EHU''; , ''UPV''; officially EHU) is a Spanish public university of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community. Heir of the University of Deusto, University of Bilbao, initial ...

. He pursued a political career in the

Basque National Party The Basque Nationalist Party ( , EAJ; , PNV; , PNB; EAJ-PNV), officially the Basque National Party in English, is a Basque nationalist and regionalist political party. The party is located in the centre of the political spectrum. It has been des ...

since the early 1990s until the mid-2000s, as an MEP,

spokesperson A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

of the Basque autonomous government, and chairman of the party, succeeding

Xabier Arzalluz Xabier Arzalluz Antia (24 August 1932 – 28 February 2019) was a Basque politician, leader of the Basque Nationalist Party from 1979 until 2004. He was a nationalist and a Christian Democrat, considered during the period one of the most power ...

Training

Josu Jon Imaz San Miguel has a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

from the

. He graduated from the Faculty of Chemical Sciences in San Sebastian. He received the Extraordinary Prize of Degree. He specialised in

Polymers A polymer () is a substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, b ...

. He received training in Business Management in 1989–1990, as part of the Ikasbide General Management Training Plan of the Mondragón Cooperative Group. He completed his

PhD dissertation A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...

at the Higher Institute of Industrial Engineering in

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

(1994). In December

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

he was sent by the INASMET Technology Centre to the French CETIM centre, having received a grant from the Ministry of Industry and Energy as part of their overseas training programme for researchers.

Professional career

Manager of the Composites and Polymers Unit of INASMET from 1987 to 1989. He joined the Mondragón Cooperative Group from 1989 to 1991 as an industrial developer. Manager of the Marketing and External Relations Department of INASMET from 91 to 94. After time off spent in politics, he resumed his academic career as a visiting researcher at the

Harvard Kennedy School The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

. In 2008 he returned to the business world as president of

Petronor Petróleos del Norte S.A. (Petronor) is a Spanish oil and gas company based in Muskiz, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country. The company was established on 30 November 1968. From 1976 to 1981, its executive manager was Nemesio Fer ...

, a Repsol group company headquartered in Muskiz, near Bilbao. In 2010 he became director of Repsol's New Energies Unit with the aim of identifying opportunities, developing projects and carrying out business initiatives in areas such as bioenergy and renewable energy for transport. In 2012 he became a member of Repsol's executive committee, as executive director of the Industrial and New Energies Unit. In November 2011, he was elected President of the Spanish Association of Petroleum Operators (A.O.P.). In 2024, he warned against the focus of the European Union on

decarbonization Climate change mitigation (or decarbonisation) is action to limit the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that cause climate change. Climate change mitigation actions include conserving energy and replacing fossil fuels with clean energy sour ...

and its effect on the competition of European industries. Similar earlier opinions expressed in the Davos Forum had been reproached by the Spanish minister for ecological transition

Teresa Ribera Teresa Ribera Rodríguez (; born 19 May 1969) is a Spanish jurist, civil servant, academic, and politician who is the First Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition and Commissioner for Comp ...

, accusing him of

denial Denial, in colloquial English usage, has at least three meanings: * the assertion that any particular statement or allegation, whose truth is uncertain, is not true; * the refusal of a request; and * the assertion that a true statement is fal ...

and arguing for delay. He was supported by PNV MEP Izaskun Bilbao.

Political life

In June 1994 he was elected Euro-Deputy to the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

, a post that he held until his appointment on 7 January 1999 as Regional Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism of the Regional Government of the Basque Country. As a regional minister of Industry, he was president of the Basque Energy Entity (EVE), president of the Society for Industrial Promotion and Reconversion (SPRI) and spokesman for the Basque Regional Government. In January 2004 he was elected chairman of the executive committee of EAJ-PNV. In autumn 2007, he announced his decision not to stand for re-election and ended his career in politics.

Awards and Acknowledgements

In 2006 he was awarded the

Creu de Sant Jordi The Creu de Sant Jordi (, in English language, English 'St George's Cross') is one of the highest civil distinctions awarded in Catalonia (Spain), surpassed only in protocol by the Gold Medal of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Gold Medal of the G ...

(St. George Cross), by the Catalan Regional Government.

References

External links

Imaz's page
in the organizational chart of Repsol {{DEFAULTSORT:Imaz, Josu 1963 births Basque Nationalist Party MEPs Living people Members of the 7th Basque Parliament MEPs for Spain 1994–1999 People from Zumarraga, Spain Spanish chemists University of the Basque Country alumni Spanish business executives