The president of AVEBIOM, Javier Díaz, participated on April 16 in the round table on energy in the rural world of the III National Meeting of the Network of Territorial Innovation Centers (Red CIT), held in The Cultural Thermal Center of Ponferrada. The session also brought together Félix Romero, director of the Biodiversity Foundation, and Antonio Rivero, head of Sustainability Impact at Moeve, moderated by Yasodhara López, general director of CIUDEN.
The event was opened by the Third Vice-President and Minister for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Sara Aagesen, who placed the meeting within the framework of the upcoming Second Strategy for Territorial Equity and the Demographic Challenge and emphasized the role of Territorial Innovation Centers as spaces for connecting stakeholders, identifying opportunities, facilitating projects, and strengthening territorial resilience. This approach aligns perfectly with the content of the panel on energy, which focused on how to translate local resources into development, employment, and cohesion in rural areas.
Javier Díaz argued that the energy transition will only be viable if it is based on solutions linked to the local area. In his speech, he emphasized that if Spain wants to advance towards energy sovereignty, it must rely on rural areas and resources such as biomass, whose main advantage is that the raw material is found precisely where much of the demographic challenge is concentrated.
Díaz also noted that the solid biofuels sector has a deeply rural presence and is difficult to relocate. Around 90% of biofuel plants are located in municipalities with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants, This makes the industry a stable source of employment and added value in areas that need lasting economic opportunities. However, he also warned that industry alone is not enough: to retain the population, housing, services, and improved living conditions are needed in the municipalities where these projects are located.
Biomass and renewable gases can play a strategic role in territorial development because they allow produce local energy, to utilize agroforestry resources, valorize by-products and waste, and reduce dependence on foreign energy. A direct link with the land gives bioenergy a distinct advantage over other renewables.
Regarding the public acceptance of energy projects, Díaz addressed the opposition faced by some biomethane initiatives and argued that the best response lies in providing better information, showcasing well-designed facilities, and providing citizens with real-world examples of successful projects. She also called for greater institutional support for municipalities that invest in these types of developments, as it is often the local officials who must bear the brunt of the public pressure generated by movements opposing new plants.
Javier Díaz also pointed out the biomass-fueled heating networks as one of the most effective solutions for providing renewable energy at stable prices to citizens and public buildings. Energy volatility and the growing interest in strengthening strategic autonomy position grids as infrastructures that provide tangible and visible benefits to the population, especially in small and medium-sized municipalities.
The day also yielded a shared reflection among the participants: the energy transition in rural areas cannot be addressed solely through technology. It requires cooperation between government agencies, businesses, research centers, and civil society; it needs economic viability; and it must translate into employment, training, and services that make living and working in the region attractive. This was one of the central messages of the Ponferrada meeting.