Iberdrola, one of the largest companies in the world in the production and supply of electricity, focus on Italy. Present in our country for just over a year, today the company is ready to "take flight" to achieve an ambitious goal: "1 million customers by 2022", explained to FIRSTonline the Country Manager of Iberdrola Italia, Lorenzo Constantines. Taking advantage of the imminent revolution decreed by the transition to the free market, Iberdrola intends to expand commercially in our country, with a strategy based on green and digital energy.
In this interview we asked Lorenzo Costantini, number one of the company in Italy, to explain to us what the company's next moves will be and what Italian consumers should expect from a sector that is about to face a huge change: farewell to the regulated market.
Doctor Costantini, Iberdrola is the leader in Spain and the United Kingdom and you are increasing production in all your main markets: Portugal, the United States, Mexico and Brazil. What are the present and the future of the company in Italy?
“In Italy we have recently been present in the supply of electricity, gas and other associated products. We've built everything from scratch and we're very happy with how it's going. Now we are ready to take flight, to intensify our activity to the maximum to achieve our goal. Since the beginning of 2018, we have managed to create a base of 150 thousand customers. At the same time, to make the brand known, we have carried out advertising campaigns and, according to the data available to us, we have reached very good levels of awareness. It takes time, but the path we have set is the right one".
In numbers, what is your goal?
“In Spain we supply electricity to 16 million customers. In Italy we aim to reach one million customers by 2022. Our target is the domestic consumer, even if we are suppliers in other segments such as large industrial customers and SMEs. Precisely with the aim of expanding our base, a new campaign will be released at the end of September with which we will present an innovative product that will allow us to establish a direct line between Iberdrola and customers”.
What product is it?
“We try to offer a product that adapts as much as possible to the customers' consumption and lifestyles and at the same time we try to support them and accompany them in a possible change of plan. If the chosen one does not prove to be suitable for allowing the greatest possible savings, we help them understand and correct it. Let me give you a practical example: a worker who spends all day in the office is often forced to do the laundry in the evening or on weekends, so he consumes much more energy during these hours. Our offer manages to adapt to needs and aims to create greater awareness of consumption, but also of what the free market offers compared to the protected one.
Today, one out of two families in Italy is still on the protected market. Iberdrola, thanks to specific campaigns, will help consumers identify the most suitable plan to achieve greater savings. Not only that, green and digital will also be fundamental. 'Green' because we are one of the world leaders in the production of renewable energy and all our offers are 100% certified green energy and at no extra cost to the customer. 'Digital' because we focus heavily on the digital channel both for customer acquisition and for customer care , customer experience".
You referred to the free market. The definitive liberalization of the Italian electricity market should take place in July 2020. What opportunities open up for a group like you who want to expand on the Italian market?
“The competition decree established the end of the regulated market for 2018. It has been postponed twice and now we have arrived at the date of 1 July 2020. The end of the regulated market can represent an opportunity above all for large companies like us who intend to enter and expand into Italy. But it's not the driver which has guided our investment.
Undoubtedly the market share that operators will face on the free market will be interesting. We believe that there is an excessive number of operators. The Authority's report speaks of 400 companies active in the sale of electricity and over 200 in gas. Those are too high numbers, I defy anyone to remember more than 5 or 6 player. The free market will make it possible to bring order to the confusion. An important company like Iberdrola, financially solid and with a capitalization of over 60 billion, is also able to give a strong signal to the regulators”.
So in your opinion the free market will also help to bring out the most solid companies that offer higher quality?
“The journey in this direction has already begun. Consolidation is already underway among the major players, despite the myriad of small companies active in the sector. The end of the protected market could accelerate this trend even further by redesigning the structure, guaranteeing greater reliability of the sales companies and of the system itself, setting new rules that can make the market more fluid and efficient. It is an opportunity to give a new face to the market at 360 degrees”.
As you said there is a great deal of confusion on the subject. Many users don't quite understand what 'free market' means. We have talked about the opportunities offered to companies, but what can be the advantages for customers?
“It's true, there is a strong need to promptly inform customers. Even the very word 'protection' can lead non-experts to think that there are no guarantees in the free market. In reality, the free market is already largely protected by regulators. As for the benefits for customers, the first is undoubtedly the savings. It is right to let consumers know that there is the possibility of spending something less. If you take a look at the ranking of the offers on the Authority's website, you realize that there are already many plans today that allow you to save money compared to the protection price.
The advantages also concern the innovative services linked to the commodity and therefore to energy services. It is a world in which liberalization can act as a driving force because it allows the customer to enter the market, see which are the most convenient offers, the most suitable services for their needs. The issue is not only the price, but also the quality of the offer”.
We talked about Iberdrola's commercial expansion in Italy. Do you also intend to acquire new production capacity?
“Iberdrola has presented a global plan of investments in renewables for 2022 of 11 billion. It is a very ambitious plan, but it is not yet known how it will be implemented in the various countries. If the Spanish market is already mature for Iberdrola, in other countries our strategy requires, in addition to commercial expansion projects, also the presence of renewable plants. We want to take one step further towards the generation of renewable energy, wind and solar, in all countries. We are already developing wind and photovoltaic projects in France and Portugal. We'll see if interesting opportunities will arise in Italy as well."
Are you looking to acquire implants?
“I have no specific information about it. As a consideration, I can say that growing rapidly in a totally organic way in renewable production is objectively more complex and longer than a commercial expansion where we will exploit our consolidated international experience to acquire new customers without acquiring third-party companies. Also because what we want is to build a solid identity based on our corporate narrative, our values, our green and digital product.
