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Luca de Meo, executive chairman of Seat, has said that the situation in Catalonia harms the region in order to attract future investors. "I don't know what the effect is but it sure has an impact and surely it doesn't help investors to facilitate the idea that you have to bet on Catalonia. Investors need clarity, stability for the future."

Keep in mind that Seat is the largest employer and industrial investor in Catalonia.

According to De Meo, from Seat "we produce and sell cars, we have no intention of participating in the debate. All we have to do is not be a problem added to a fatter one. As long as these movements do not impact the operation of our business , we have nothing to say . "

While a few weeks ago the factory had to stop two days. "For the factory a few days are many tens of millions of euros. Technically no one assured that the pieces would arrive at the factory or ensure that people could come to the factory. We have not gone on strike," he made it clear.

De Meo made these statements within the New Economy Forum in the presence of the Minister of Economy, Nadia Calviño , and the Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities, Pedro Duque , who recalled that the automobile industry "is an industry that provides value incalculable to society . "

" It accounts for 10% of GDP, two million related families ; we are 85% more innovative, Mr. Minister, than the national industry average," De Meo added during his speech at the New Economy Forum .

As he also said, " in 10 years electric cars will be cheaper than a traditional one, especially diesel cars , because to reach the emission targets, more systems will have to be put in."

"Martorell is going to achieve this year record production history and in the next three years I have no concern because we will have an almost 100% occupancy of the workforce. But the entire industry will suffer in the next two years a 'storm perfect 'for bad : Spain has a downward market after a positive cycle of six or seven years, "predicted the CEO of Seat.

"We, in order to bring to the market the new technology, connected and electric cars, double the expenditure on R&D. If we do not achieve the CO2 targets in 2021 we will pay multimillion dollar fines . We talk about 'billions' throughout the industry ( billions of euros), "De Meo said.

"My concern is that our company has a lot of pressure. We had never been so successful , because Seat had lost money for 10 years. What encourages me is that we enter the new phase in a position of strength and being part of the group Volkswagen allows us to access highly developed technology. The next few years will be 'rock and roll' because we have to generate a lot of 'cash' to develop this energy, "explained the president of Seat.

"Thanks to the connected car we have made technologies hitherto unknown to the population accessible. Our role is to democratize technology at the highest level of security . We cannot afford a beta version. It is unthinkable (Tesla). Driving assistance systems (ADAS) avoid or reduce the consequences of 51,000 accidents of the 91,000 that occur on the roads. "

" We are an industry that generates quality employment . Temporality is half that in other sectors. In Seat 97% of employment is fixed . We are progress and prosperity. We have to take more care of the miracle of the Spanish automotive industry, now that we have great mobility and electrification challenges. "

"The electrification is faced by all manufacturers together. We can manufacture hundreds of thousands of models. We need 800,000 recharging points until 2040 , we have more than 11,000 gas stations but it is not enough for us, we must transform the parkings. The new mobility ecosystem is made up of administrations , with a simplified system that does not confuse the citizen. "

"We are facing a complex system that requires a state pact that values ​​the automobile industry . This is a challenge today, tomorrow and the next decades. Retaining talent is key because today's young people are tomorrow's executives "Seat invested 21 million euros in Training, 12 times more than the industry average. We have to increase this figure because it is not enough."

"We are living in a moment of great change. It is the responsibility of the automobile industry to fight for the goal of zero emissions. It cannot be that the age of the park is more than 12 years. We must encourage renewal with purchase incentives and points recharging and crushing. 80% of the park's emissions come from vehicles over 10 years old. "

"Many industries and administrations are involved in this process. Today innovation is more important than ever . We have 1,000 engineers working in new mobility.

Seat would not have had a turnover of more than 10,000 million euros if it had not risked. "

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