Spain

Spain’s climate framework is anchored in Law 7/2021 on Climate Change and Energy Transition, supported by the Integrated National Energy and Climate Plan (PNIEC) 2023–2030, the Long-Term Decarbonisation Strategy (ELP 2050), and a Just Transition Strategy/Institute. These instruments set economy-wide mitigation targets (e.g., PNIEC 2023–2030 headline figures and an ELP pathway to climate-neutrality by 2050) and include governance/monitoring elements; however, they are arranged as a climate-energy package rather than a single, legally binding green economy plan that comprehensively integrates environmental and economic policy across all sectors (beyond climate/energy) into one statutory planning instrument.

Spain aligns with the EU Gender Balance on Corporate Boards Directive (EU) 2022/2381, which entered into force in late 2024 and requires listed companies to ensure at least 40 % of non-executive director seats or 33 % of all board positions are held by the under-represented gender. Spain has transposed this directive into national law for publicly listed companies, with phased compliance through 2027. Employee consultation rights remain embedded in the Workers’ Statute, but no national legislation mandates employee representation on corporate boards. The Spanish Securities Market Commission (CNMV) recommends listed companies disclose ESG risks and SDG-related performance and has issued updated ESG Reporting Guidelines (2025); these disclosures, however, are largely voluntary. The Agenda 2030 Secretariat continues to promote SDG alignment through consultations and best-practice dissemination, but without binding obligations.

Spain mandates prior public consultation and hearing & public information for draft regulations, and requires a Regulatory Impact Assessment (MAIN) that covers multiple impacts. Spain also runs multi-year Open Government Plans with public input. Coverage of specific marginalised groups depends on the policy file and is not uniformly mandatory across all legislation and levels; specialised ex-ante social impact analyses (beyond gender in some EU-funded plans) are not consistently standardised across the whole policy cycle.

Spain maintains official beyond-GDP statistical products (SEEA-based environmental accounts and SDG indicator dashboards) compiled by the National Statistics Institute (INE) under the 2025–2028 National Statistical Plan. These include Environmental Goods and Services Sector (EGSS), air emissions, environmental protection expenditure, material flows and related indicator releases; INE also runs Spain’s SDG indicators platform. Spain contributes to EU workstreams (Eurostat EGSS/SEEA and INCA) and publishes national “environmental indicators” updates. There is, however, no evidence of a single, fully integrated “comprehensive wealth” framework covering all capitals that is embedded across the central planning and budget cycle; rather, metrics are used in reporting and selected strategies.

Spain’s financial architecture aligns with EU sustainable-finance rules and adds national structures: the Council for Sustainable Finance was created by Order ECM/44/2025 to coordinate policy; the Treasury runs a sovereign Green Bond programme under a 2021 Green Bond Framework and continues reopenings; CNMV maintains a dedicated sustainable-finance portal and has embedded sustainability as a strategic line. Banking supervision and stress-testing follow the SSM/EBA framework: Spanish banks participate in the 2025 EU-wide stress test and are subject to ECB supervisory expectations on climate and environmental risks; the ECB reports that all significant banks now include climate risks in their stress-testing frameworks. The Banco de España publishes climate metrics for its non-monetary portfolios and integrates climate risk analysis within financial-stability work. Incentive/penalty tools for directing credit away from high-emitting sectors are not established as national prudential measures beyond EU-level disclosures and supervisory expectations.

Spain has advanced voluntary green fiscal mechanisms, notably its sovereign green bond program and ecological public procurement, but lacks a comprehensive, mandatory financial stress-testing framework fully integrated into budgeting. Spain pioneered its sovereign green bond program by issuing inaugural green sovereign bonds in 2021 (repeated issuances through 2024), aligned with the EU’s Green Bond Standard and reporting on use-of-proceeds and impact. As of early 2025, the government continues consistent tapping of the green bond framework. Additionally, through its Ecological Public Procurement Plan (2018–2025), central government agencies, autonomous bodies, and Social Security entities systematically apply quantitative green criteria to public contracts. While these measures enable ad-hoc environmental risk management, a fully fledged fiscal or monetary stress-testing framework remains absent.

Spain supports sustainable trade through instruments such as its Green Economy and Trade Manual, developed by the Ministry for the Ecological Transition, which links trade, environmental governance, eco-labeling, and green public procurement. At the EU level, Spain backs trade agreements with environmental chapters and sustainability standards. However, domestically, there is limited integration of green taxonomies or carbon pricing into trade agreements, and no formal participation in multilateral green trade pacts like ACCTS.

Spain prices carbon through EU instruments: participation in the EU ETS (Phase IV, extended to maritime in 2024) and the forthcoming ETS2 for buildings and road transport (operational in 2027). Spain’s updated NECP (PNIEC 2023–2030) sets national targets for GHG reductions and sector measures but Spain does not have a legally binding national carbon-budget statute. Additional national measures include the 2025 Royal Decree 214/2025, which upgrades the national carbon-footprint register and obliges certain entities to calculate and publish emissions and reduction plans, complementing EU reporting under CSRD/ESRS.

Spain has a comprehensive and coordinated sectoral approach underpinned by the Climate Change & Energy Transition Law (2021), the PNIEC 2021–2030, and the ELP 2050 roadmap. Cross-sector actions include renewable and hydrogen targets (74% RES electricity and 42% RE in final consumption by 2030), a national green hydrogen roadmap (12 GW by 2030), just-transition frameworks, and decarbonisation measures spanning energy, transport, buildings, industry, agriculture, waste, and water. These are financed via EU recovery funds (Recovery & Resilience Plan / REPowerEU) and national policy. Progress is strong in energy and industry, but implementation in transport and agriculture is uneven.

Spain’s “España Circular 2030” Strategy, launched in June 2020, sets long-term targets for reducing material usage, decreasing food waste, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, and promoting reuse and recycling. The strategy is supported by rolling three-year action plans (2021–2023 and 2024–2026), and they cover key sectors such as construction, agriculture, industry, and tourism. It also emphasizes circular public procurement and innovation. Recent initiatives like Rebo2vino in the wine sector illustrate practical innovation, while the Ecoembes Comerciales initiative (effective from 2025) strengthens producer responsibility and circular management across Spain.

Spain’s Safe, Sustainable and Connected Mobility Strategy 2030 (2021) lays out over 150 measures for decarbonizing transport via electrification, modal shift, digitalization, and rural mobility enhancements. It is backed by the Sustainable Mobility Law (in process as of early 2025) and funded through the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR). Additionally, mechanisms such as green collective bargaining will mandate sustainable mobility plans for large workplaces. Implementation includes expansions in low-emission zones, employer mobility plans, and a growing institutional framework under the newly created Secretariat General for Sustainable Mobility.

Spain’s updated PNIEC 2023–2030, approved in September 2024, increases ambition: targeting 81 % renewable electricity, 48 % renewables in final energy, 76 GW solar PV, 62 GW wind, 12 GW green hydrogen, and 22.5 GW storage by 2030. It also commits to reduce GHG emissions by 32% compared to 1990 levels by 2030, up from the initial 23% goal set in previous PNIEC, and commits to 100 % renewable electricity by 2050 under the Climate Change and Energy Transition Law. Financing is enabled through EU Recovery & Resilience and REPowerEU funds, and policy mechanisms include green auctions, self-consumption incentives, permitting streamlining, and a reinforced electricity grid investment strategy. Implementation challenges persist in permitting, storage, interconnections, and ensuring grid stability during blackout incidents. Overall, Spain has strong and clearly defined renewable energy targets, backed by robust support schemes and funding.

Spain’s commitment to green jobs remains solid and institutionally integrated, actively supporting green job creation through national programs co-funded by EU initiatives. The Empleaverde program (MITECO/ESF) awarded €7.5 million in 2022 for 66 projects focused on green economy training, employment support, and entrepreneurship—benefiting over 7,000 individuals [Fuente: IEA]. In February 2025, the government allocated €1.214 billion from NextGenEU to establish seven renewable hydrogen clusters, projected to create ~20,000 direct and indirect jobs [MITECO]. Additionally, the Just Transition Institute continues to promote gender-inclusive transition schemes, regionally targeted for fossil-dependent territories. Institutional planning acknowledges job inclusivity and structural challenges, balancing strong public-private action with room for greater ambition.

Spain has nationally coordinated green jobs planning through MITECO, the Biodiversity Foundation, and the Just Transition Institute, all embedded in long-term strategies. Execution lags in some regions, and monitoring of job quality could be more robust, but strong performance in planning, actions, financing, inclusion efforts and tangible job creation justifies the upgrade.

Spain has an institutionalised just-transition architecture led by the Instituto para la Transición Justa (ITJ) under MITECO, with national Just Transition Strategy instruments (territorial “Just Transition Agreements,” support schemes, calls) and annual/operational plans. In parallel, Spain’s EU-funded Territorial Just Transition Plans (TJTPs) under the Just Transition Fund (JTF) were approved by the European Commission, covering coal- and plant-closure-affected territories (e.g., Asturias; León/Palencia; Teruel; A Coruña; Almería, Cádiz, Córdoba; Alcúdia area) with an €~869m JTF programme. Implementation reporting (ITJ plans and activity reports) evidences pipelines, governance, and labour-market measures; a single cross-sector, fully consolidated national framework beyond energy-related regions is still evolving.

Spain legally recognises the social economy (co-operatives, mutuals, associations, foundations, etc.) through Law 5/2011, and the Spanish Social Economy Strategy 2023–2027 is in force. Targeted financial and capability instruments are available: the PERTE for the Social Economy and Care (under the Recovery Plan) with competitive calls in 2024–2025; ICO Verde credit lines backing decarbonisation, circularity and energy projects for firms of all sizes (including MSMEs); and IDAE/PRTR schemes that fund MSME energy-efficiency and circular-economy projects. Spain does not, however, have a distinct “social enterprise” legal form separate from existing social-economy types, and green MSME support is spread across multiple programmes rather than a single consolidated statutory package.

Spain continues to trial innovative social protection tied to green and inclusion goals at regional and municipal levels. The state-level Minimum Vital Income (IMV), launched in 2020 under the National Strategy to Fight Poverty, provides a safety net but has seen limited uptake and lacks integration with climate or green transition initiatives. In contrast, Barcelona’s B‑MINCOME pilot (2017–2019), funded by Urban Innovative Actions, combined a guaranteed municipal income with active social, employment, housing, and community participation programs in deprived neighbourhoods—demonstrating a strong link between social security and inclusion, though only at the city scale. Spain has also begun using EU Just Transition funds (€200 million) and local environmental restoration schemes tied to mining-area employment. However, there is still no cohesive national framework aligning social protection with the green economy.

Marine planning was operationalised by Royal Decree 150/2023 approving Maritime Spatial Plans (POEM) for Spain’s five marine demarcations, complementing Law 41/2010 and Marine Strategies. On biodiversity, Spain’s State Strategic Plan for Natural Heritage and Biodiversity 2030 (PEEPNB 2030) provides the national framework aligned with EU/CBD/GBF goals; the Ministry publishes periodic indicator-based “Perfil Ambiental de España” and related updates. Natura 2000 and national parks underpin terrestrial coverage. While planning instruments are in force and indicator reports are published, a single consolidated GBF/NBSAP progress dashboard with interim target tracking is not issued as a standalone product.

Spain produces official environmental economic accounts via INE (e.g., environmental goods & services, material flows, air emissions, environmental taxes). Biodiversity governance is structured under Law 42/2007 through the State Strategic Plan for Natural Heritage and Biodiversity 2030 and the Spanish Inventory of Natural Heritage and Biodiversity (IEPNB), which publishes annual indicator-based reports and datasets. Advisory bodies exist (e.g., State Council for Natural Heritage and Biodiversity) that must report on state-level norms and plans; these are ministerial bodies, not independent committees with statutory budget-planning powers. Spain does not yet publish a consolidated set of ecosystem/natural-capital asset and service valuation accounts that comprehensively distinguish socio-cultural, economic and global values across communities, although groundwork (inventorying, indicators, accounts by domain) is in place.

Spain’s food systems approach is guided by a cross-ministerial alignment with the European Union’s Farm to Fork Strategy, supplemented by specific national plans and policy frameworks. A key initiative is the implementation of the Strategic Plan for the Common Agricultural Policy (PAC 2023-2027), which includes funding and mechanisms to promote sustainable production, rural development, and climate adaptation, aligning with SDGs 2 and 12.

In 2024–2025, policy emphasis focused on supply chain resilience, reducing food loss and waste (through the 2023 Law on the Prevention of Food Losses and Waste), and promoting healthy, sustainable diets through the National Health System. The government has prioritized support for innovation in the sector via the Strategic Project for Economic Recovery and Transformation in the Agri-Food Sector (PERTE Agroalimentario), which channels public-private investment into modernization and digitalization. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) coordinates national actions, integrating food safety, quality, and environmental sustainability across its policy agenda.

Spain has enacted nature-relevant fiscal instruments, notably the state excise tax on non-reusable plastic packaging (effective 2023) and the state landfill/incineration tax, under Law 7/2022 on waste and contaminated soils for a circular economy, with implementing guidance from the Tax Agency. Spain operates within the EU sustainable finance framework (EU Taxonomy Regulation) and, at EU level, the Commission issued the “Roadmap towards Nature Credits” in July 2025 to mobilise private biodiversity finance. There is no national aviation passenger tax in force (some measures were discussed historically); harmful-subsidy reform remains partial, and dedicated large-scale, targeted national financing streams explicitly labelled for IPLCs (as internationally defined) are not a central feature of Spain’s domestic system.

Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (PRTR), amended several times and complemented by a REPowerEU chapter, maintains a substantial “green” share (around the EU-required ≥37% climate contribution, with Commission and ancillary sources frequently citing ~40%). The Council Implementing Decision has been amended multiple times (2023–2025) to reflect updates, with investments spanning renewables, grids, efficiency, sustainable mobility and nature restoration. Implementation proceeds under performance-based milestones and targets; documentation notes just-transition linkages (territorial and sectoral).