Abengoa

On January 4, 1941, Javier Benjumea Puigcerver and Jose Manuela Abaurre Fernandez-Pasalagua, both engineers from I.C.A.I., founded in Seville along
with three friends and relatives Sociedad Abengoa, SL, with a social capital of 180 000 pesetas.
Initially, the objective of Abengoa was the manufacture of 5A single-phase counters, but the supply problems of Spain in those years made that unfeasible. This condition in addition of the great possibilities of work in projects and electrical assemblies, determined in 1943 the new Abengoa’s vocation, focused on Projects and Technical Assessments as well as electrical assemblies.

Six decades of Abengoa’s history:

1.941-1.950
Foundational Stage: First activities and regional expansion, obtaining invoices above 45 million pesetas.

1.951-1.960
National Expansion and Strengthening: The invoice in this decade exceeded 827 million pesetas

1.961-1.970
Initiation in the International Market Activities: Abengoa celebrates its 25 years, getting an invoice of 4 880 million pesetas.

1.971-1.980
Continuous Growth: The invoice exceeded 52 396 million pesetas

1.981-1.990
Communications Growth, Electronics Consolidation, Environmental Problems, Structures adaptation to new information systems.

1.991-2.003
Development and constant Innovation on Information Technologies, Renewable Energy, Bioethanol and Environment. The invoice at the end of the millennia exceeded 144 000 million pesetas. On 2003 it has been of 1 522 million euros.

During the Evolution of Abengoa, the development of the National Energy Plan, in 1978 marked a whole generation, based on innovative efforts, and technology adaptation. The decade between 1971 and 1980 represented decisive years for Abengoa’s development and consolidation because of the incorporation of advanced technologies, it completed its expansion in the national market, it expanded its international participation and new specialized companies were created, always with the slogan of: Innovation as a rule and with the best service to the client.

On the following decade, because of the slow down of the PEN, new needs and objectives were established in Abengoa and in the middle eighties an unmistakable change took place, because of the incorporation of intelligent buildings as technology innovation in the operative field of industry, electronics and information systems changed the technology applied to transportation, the increasing global environmental concern was shared by Abengoa that threw its strategy for water, solid wastes and pollution treatment, with a great development of engineering capabilities, control systems and communication software and integration applied to the industry, environment, defense, etc.

During the years before 1994, Abengoa evolved from a “conventional” product line based on the assemblies and installation in the industrial, energy and telecommunication sectors, or closely linked to limited markets, to a “wide range of differentiated activities”, with a greater added value, because of its greater technological component and larger growth potential. This way, Abengoa increased the development of its activities in renewable energies, cogeneration, biomass and environment and with new markets in privatizing process like water, urban and industrial waste management, energy centrals, construction and operation for the toll system of transmission lines, etc.

These extraordinary development advances gave Abengoa a great management capacity and great increase of its own resources, making possible to carry out global offers of supply and construction, as well as the financing of this type of projects.

Abengoa, with great vision of the future, integrated all this huge changes in a clear reorganization of its business lines project, culminating on 1994. Presenting, a well-balanced combination of diversified activities, for this reason the organizational structure was updated by adopting a more flexible organization strategy capable of adapt itself to the changes of the new markets.

These new organizational structure has been the basis for the current one, composed by the following business groups: Bioenergy, Services, Environmental, Information Technologies, Engineering and Industrial Construction and Latin America.

During the latest times, Abengoa has made strategic performances that have been consolidating the strategic plan defined in 1996 (year when it began quoting in the Stock Market). In this stage, Abengoa have taken advantage of the traditional activity capabilities to generate added value business and at the same time achieve the diversification of geographical markets activities.

The actions culminated during the year 2000 (mostly the purchase of Befesa and the beginning of operation of the first bioethanol production plant), were complemented in 2001 with other strategic operations (wind power). Also, in 2002, the management has been centered in consolidating the capabilities of the four business groups that form Abengoa today, as an industrial and technological firm that gives solutions for the Sustainable Development of the Knowledge-based Society and the creation of infrastructure.

Abengoa México