Iberduero

The origin of Iberduero is in the company Hidroeléctrica Ibérica, which was founded in Bilbao by the engineer Juan Urrutia Zulueta on July 19, 1901, with capital provided by the BBVA. Initially, this company was dedicated to the hydroelectric exploitation of several waterfalls that it built in the north of Spain, mainly in the Ebro basin. In 1944, Hidroeléctrica Ibérica absorbed Saltos del Duero, which had been founded in 1918 to exploit the hydroelectric exploitation of the Douro River in its section bordering Portugal. The merger was completed on September 30, 1944, giving rise to Iberduero S.L.

In 1990, Iberduero and Hidroeléctrica Española (Hidrola, one of its main competitors) began negotiations aimed at a possible union of their interests, seeking an alliance that would balance the electricity market, which was 40% dominated by Endesa, the same percentage that would be reached by the merger of both companies. The final agreement was reached on May 1, 1991, and the system used was a takeover bid presented by Iberduero for the integration of both companies. At the time of the merger, Hidrola had 418,605,724 shares, and Iberduero had 508,526,934; the agreement stipulated that one Iberduero share would have the same value as one share of the new company, while 5 Hidrola shares would be equivalent to 4 Hidrola shares plus 250 pesetas.

On December 12, 1992, the company resulting from the merger was legally incorporated, which would bear a name composed of those of the two previous companies: Iberdrola. This act also involved the absorption of the subsidiaries of both companies: Eléctrica de Langreo, Electra de Logroño, Vitoriana de Electricidad, Fuerzas Eléctricas de Navarra, Compañía Eléctrica del Urumea, Centrales Térmicas del Norte (Terminor) and Edificaciones Iberoamericanas.