Energy policy is key to national security. We should not rule out the possibility that renewable installations will become part of the critical infrastructures of the future, and we believe it is important to open a debate between authorities and civil society about their possible inclusion.
The analysis of national and international security is of utmost importance for any state. Designing a national security policy allows the delineation of public policies to ensure the smooth operation of any administration in power. Addressing risks and opportunities, each government outlines its roadmap. In this planning, energy policy is key. This was evident in the intervention at Foro Sella 2024 by the former director of the National Security Department (DSN) of Spain, General Miguel Ángel Ballesteros, who analyzed the energy situation from a geopolitical perspective.
Referring to the U.S., Ballesteros reminded us that the American military warns that “we live in a ‘VUCA’ world,” an acronym for a volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous, and tremendously changing world. And this also applies to the energy sector.
All states are threatened by hybrid conflicts, which use means and procedures that go beyond conventional warfare and can directly affect energy planning. “Energy is an instrument of hybrid strategies. Hybrid strategies are the way powers, like Russia and China (which acts differently but also uses them), want to establish a new world order. And energy plays a fundamental role.”
He cited the invasion of Ukraine by Russia as an example. Before the invasion, Russia supplied 45% of the gas to the entire European Union and 9% to Spain through LNG. The EU was heavily dependent on Russia, weakening any perspective on energy planning, and consequently, the national security of member states.
Therefore, Ballesteros urged the development of “a sustainable system” that enhances energy sovereignty. An example is the Energy Security Plan, promoted by the EU. “Russia has used energy as an instrument in a conflict, but it is also an opportunity, because out of this has emerged a Europe that wants to boost energy sovereignty. And for a country like Spain, which has a 70% global energy dependency (which must be reduced to 51% by 2030), the only solution is the path of renewable energy.”
Domestic Energies
Ballesteros warned that for sustainability to work in our favor, “it is essential to develop domestic energies, which are renewables, especially wind and photovoltaic,” as in 2022-2023, hydraulic energy fell by 42%.
In this approach to energy sovereignty and security, from the Foro Industria y Energía, we want to go further and consider it essential to open a debate on whether all structures capable of generating renewable energy should be included among the state’s critical infrastructures. In the latest report of the National Security Department (DSN), critical sectors are mentioned, and energy is one of them. In this sense, as renewable energies become more present in the Spanish energy mix, they could become more vulnerable.
When fossil fuels have less weight in the mix, threats to pipelines or oil tankers, for example, are likely to decrease. However, it is also likely that threats will increase to the structures that generate and transport renewable energies. Any threat to these renewable energies can hinder not only the energy transition but also the economic and industrial fabric.
In this regard, Albert Concepción, director of Foro Industria y Energía, believes that “we should not rule out the possibility that renewable installations will become part of the critical infrastructures of the future, and we believe it is important to open a debate between authorities and civil society about their possible inclusion. There can be no energy sovereignty for Europe without renewable energies, so it seems logical to protect them and update their security to guarantee this sovereignty.”