Àngel Simon
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Ángel Simón Grimaldos is a Spanish businessman. He was CEO of CriteriaCaixa from 2024 to 2025, and executive president of
Grupo Agbar Grupo Agbar, formerly Aigües de Barcelona, is a Spanish water utility company. Since 2022, it has been part of Veolia. The company currently operates water treatment and water supply services in Spain and Latin America, operating in Chile throu ...
from 2010 to 2024.


Early career

Ángel Simón Grimaldos studied roads, ports and canals engineering at the
Polytechnic University of Catalonia The Polytechnic University of Catalonia (, , ; UPC), currently referred to as BarcelonaTech, is the largest polytechnic university in Catalonia, Spain. UPC's objectives are based on internationalization, as it is one of Europe's techni ...
. In 1989, he became the head of the Área Metropolitana de Barcelona. He holds a degree in Civil Engineering from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya-BarcelonaTech (1980) and an MBA from
ESADE Business School ESADE Business School is a private Postgraduate education, graduate-level business school located in Barcelona, Spain. It is part of ESADE (Catalan language, Catalan: ''Escola Superior d'Administració i Direcció d'Empreses'', Spanish: ''Escuela ...
. Between 1980 and 1989, after managing SOGEMASA, a public supply company, and Sociedad Catalana de Capital Riesgo, S.A.'s projects in the years leading up to the 1992 Olympic Games, the then mayor of Barcelona,
Pasqual Maragall Pasqual Maragall Mira (; born 13 January 1941) is a Spanish retired politician and former President of Generalitat de Catalunya. He had previously been Mayor of Barcelona, from 1982 to 1997, and helped run the city's successful Olympic bid. ...
, appointed him to manage the Mancomunitat de Municipis de l'Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona and the other entities that together made up Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB) and which were replacing the Corporació Metropolitana de Barcelona following its dissolution by the
Convergència i Unió Convergence and Union (, CiU; ) was a Catalan nationalist electoral alliance in Catalonia, Spain. It was a federation of two constituent parties, the larger Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) and its smaller counterpart, the Democratic Un ...
government in 1987. Driven by the preparations under way for the 1992 Olympic Games, it was a period that saw the city of
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
transformed thanks to projects such as the Olympic Village, the ring roads and the opening up of the coastline, as well as the implementation of projects such as the rehabilitation of the
Llobregat The Llobregat () is the second longest river in Catalonia, Spain, after the Ter. It flows into the Mediterranean south of the city of Barcelona. Its name could have originated in an ancient Latin word meaning 'dark', 'muddy' or 'slippery', or ...
and Besòs riverbanks, the creation of Serra de
Collserola The Serra de Collserola (), or simply Collserola, is a mountain range between the rivers Besòs and Llobregat. It is part of the Catalan Coastal Range. These mountains separate Barcelona from the Vallès plain and their tallest peak is the Ti ...
Natural Park and the Metropolitan Sanitation Plan.


Career

Between 1989 and 1995, he was manager of the
Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona The Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB; English: Metropolitan Area of Barcelona) is a public body operating on the principle of metropolitan authority. It is composed of representatives of Barcelona and 36 adjacent municipalities accounting ...
(AMB). He joined Agbar in 1995 and was subsequently appointed company delegate in Portugal, a country which, like Spain, signed the Treaty of Accession to the
European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...
(
EEC The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organisation created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisbo ...
) on 12 June 1985, which came into force in 1986. He held the post of Agbar delegate in Portugal until 1998, when he became the Group's international general manager for the water and sanitation sector (until 1999). In 1995, he became a delegate to
Grupo Agbar Grupo Agbar, formerly Aigües de Barcelona, is a Spanish water utility company. Since 2022, it has been part of Veolia. The company currently operates water treatment and water supply services in Spain and Latin America, operating in Chile throu ...
in Portugal. In 1998, he was named the international general director of Agbar. From 1999 to 2002, he was the head manager of Aguas Andinas, and CEO from 2002 to 2010. In the last decade of the 20th century and into the coming decade, Agbar had a significant presence in Argentina, in cities such as Santa Fe,
Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...
, Rosario and
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
. It has been an active participant in Aguas Argentinas, a company in which it attained a 25% share, since 1993. In 2003, Agbar, together with its partners in
SUEZ Suez (, , , ) is a Port#Seaport, seaport city with a population of about 800,000 in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea, near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal. It is the capital and largest c ...
, filed claims before the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes ( ICSID) for lack of protection of its investments, returning the concession in 2005. The courts awarded compensation in favour of the shareholders amounting to around US$7 billion. The change made to the
Portuguese Constitution The present Constitution of Portugal - officially the Constitution of the Portuguese Republic - was adopted in 1976 after the Carnation Revolution. It was preceded by a number of constitutions including the first one created in 1822 (followin ...
, which has undergone seven revisions since 1976, in 1997 opened the country up to public-private partnerships and allowed Agbar to acquire the
Setúbal Setúbal ( , , ; ), officially the City of Setúbal (), is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the entire municipality in 2014 was 118,166, occupying an area of . The city itself had 89,303 inhabitants in 2001. It lies withi ...
water service and the sanitation service in Vale do Ave. The latter was the main area of operation of the Lusaga company, which had traditionally operated the Alcanena Tannery Treatment Plant. After three years in Portugal, in 1998 Simón took over international management of the Group's water and wastewater sector in 1998. In this post, he furthered Agbar's international reach, coinciding with the global impact Barcelona achieved following the 1992 Olympic Games. He designed and led Agbar's entry into Chile in 1999 through the acquisition of Empresa Metropolitana de Obras Sanitarias (EMOS), the country's leading company and its second to be put out to tender for public-private participation, after ESVAL. He was EMOS's first general manager following the Chilean government's transfer of this company's control to the Group. The objective at the time of the company's acquisition was to go from a 3% wastewater treatment rate to treatment of 100% of the water. The roll-out of the Zanjón de la Aguada project was one of the major undertakings. The renovation and modernisation of this waterway, which runs through the capital, Santiago, and frequently broke its banks, placed Chile at the forefront in South America and made it a benchmark. Simón remained at the Chilean company's helm for three years, during which time it was renamed Aguas Andinas following an internal process to attain greater proximity to the public. It is currently one of the most highly regarded sanitation companies in Latin America and provides service to more than 7 million inhabitants in Santiago de Chile and its metropolitan area. In 2000, Agbar teamed up with Aguas de La Habana as a technological partner, becoming the first mixed company with foreign capital to manage a public service in the country. Between 2002 and 2004, Simón was CEO of the subsidiary dedicated to the water and sanitation sector in Chile. In September 2004, he was appointed managing director of the Agbar Group. In 2006, Simón led Agbar's first major European operation in the United Kingdom,
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
Water. In October 2012, 70% of the company was sold to the Canadian investment fund CIP, with Agbar staying on as manager. In 2008, Simón became CEO of Agbar, a position he held until being named president. As CEO, he led the divestment, between 2007 and 2010, of Cespa, Applus+, ACSA, Adeslas and ASM. In 2010, Àngel Simon became the executive President of the Spanish water treatment company
Grupo Agbar Grupo Agbar, formerly Aigües de Barcelona, is a Spanish water utility company. Since 2022, it has been part of Veolia. The company currently operates water treatment and water supply services in Spain and Latin America, operating in Chile throu ...
. Since 2013, he is the senior executive vicepresident of Water Europe of
Suez Suez (, , , ) is a Port#Seaport, seaport city with a population of about 800,000 in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea, near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal. It is the capital and largest c ...
(formerly Suez Environnement), and led the acquisition of Aguas Andinas. From 2013 to 2022, he held the position of Executive Vice President of Suez, in charge of Spain, Southern Europe and Latin America. He also became president of Aigües de Barcelona, Empresa Metropolitana de Gestió del Cicle Integral de l'Aigua, S.A., a post he still holds today. The public-private company, which serves almost thirty municipalities and more than three and a half million inhabitants, was created in 2012, and its creation would later be corroborated by a ruling of the
High Court of Justice of Catalonia The High Court of Justice of Catalonia () is the highest body and last judicial instance of the Spanish judiciary in Catalonia. Unlike the Parliament of Catalonia (legislative branch) or the Executive Council of Catalonia (executive branch), t ...
in 2019. Societat General d'Aigües de Barcelona (SGAB) owns 70% of the company,
Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona The Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB; English: Metropolitan Area of Barcelona) is a public body operating on the principle of metropolitan authority. It is composed of representatives of Barcelona and 36 adjacent municipalities accounting ...
(AMB), 15%, and Criteria Caixa, 15%. In 2012, Grupo Agbar created the Solidarity Fund to help families at risk of social exclusion who could not pay their water bill, working jointly with the social services of the town councils involved. This initiative was positively assessed by the Catalan Institute for the Evaluation of Public Policies (Ivàlua). Angel Simón chairs the Agbar Foundation, which manages the Agbar Water Museum, and the Aquae Foundation, aimed at
environmental education Environmental education (EE) refers to organized efforts to teach how natural environments function, and particularly, how human beings can manage behavior and ecosystems to live sustainably. It is a multi-disciplinary field integrating discipli ...
and awareness. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Princess of Girona Foundation. In July 2022, the Princess of Girona Foundation Awards Ceremony was held at the Water Museum in Cornellá de Llobregat. In 2016, he announced the sale of the water management concession of the city of
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. In 2018, he stood against Podemos' proposition to "remunicipalize" Barcelona's water system. In 2021, the French group
Veolia Veolia Environnement S.A., branded as Veolia, is a French transnational company with activities in three main service and utility areas traditionally managed by public authorities – water management, waste management and energy services. In ...
, a world leader in resource management (water, energy and waste) and in ecological transformation, made a public offer for the acquisition of Suez shares. Following the validation by the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...
, in January 2022, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) published the results of Veolia's takeover bid for 95.95% of Suez's capital. Following this process of integration in Veolia, since March 2022, Angel Simón has held the position of Senior Vice President Iberia & Latam on Veolia's Executive Committee. In January 2024, Angel Simón was appointed CEO of CriteriaCaixa. He retained the positions of president of Agbar but resigned as Veolia's senior vice-president for Spain and Latin America.


Forced exit

In June 2024, a letter from the board of Veolia, authored by its General Secretary Helman le Pas de Sécheval, highlighted CriteriaCaixa and Simón's malicious maneuvers to facilitate an hostile takeover of Veolia's subsidiary Aigües de Barcelona (Agbar) by CriteriaCaixa. He immediately resigned from his role as non-executive director of Aigües de Barcelona, supposedly to avoid a lawsuit from Veolia. This humiliation permanently weakened his position at CriteriaCaixa. In April 2025, the governing body of CriteriaCaixa issued an official letter removing Simón from his managing responsibilities at the company. CriteriaCaixa had become aware of Simón's rogue attitude after he secretly pre-negotiated CriteriaCaixa's takeover on Celsa (Catalan refractory provider). Inside sources also mention escalating tensions between Simón and CriteriaCaixa's Head, Isidre Fainé.


Distinctions

* June 2017: Medal of honor from the Colegio de Ingenieros de Caminos * February 2018: Received the key to the city of Barcelona


References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Angel Living people Spanish businesspeople Spanish business executives 1957 births