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ACCIONA FIRST STEPS
Our story starts in 1931 when Entrecanales y Távora S.A was founded by José Entrecanales Ibarra and Manuel Távora. The first projects included remodelling the San Telmo Bridge in Seville and construction work on the Cádiz Pier.
WE GROW AND EVOLVE: ACCIONA IS BORN
ACCIONA was created in 1997 as a diversified group, with José María Entrecanales de Azcárate as President and Juan Entrecanales de Azcárate as Vice President. ACCIONA was established as an international holding company for companies operating in various fields of the industry and the services sector.
ACCIONA in Australia: Energy
In 2002, ACCIONA established a presence in the renewable energy market in Australia. Since then, our ACCIONA Energía business has become a major player in the industry, working exclusively with renewable technologies, mainly wind and solar. ACCIONA Energía has built and owns four wind farms in Australia and is currently building its fifth. In 2020, ACCIONA Energía announced that they will be building an additional 1,026 MW wind farm in Queensland, which will be ACCIONA Energía’s biggest renewable energy facility and one of the largest onshore wind farms in the world.
Infrastructure, energy and water: our three pillars
José Manuel Entrecanales Domecq, son of José María Entrecanales de Azcárate and grandson of the founder, is appointed President, while Juan Ignacio Entrecanales Franco, son of Juan Entrecanales de Azcárate, becomes Vice President. Both navigate the company's transition towards its three pillars of growth: infrastructure, energy and water. This in-depth transformation was made possible by a huge financial investment and a strong commitment to innovation and social engagement as a driving force for quality employment.
ACCIONA INFRASTRUCTURE IN AUSTRALIA
In 2007, ACCIONA saw the potential of Australia as a core business market for their infrastructure business. The first major infrastructure project delivered in Australia was Legacy Way, 4.25km of twin road tunnels in Brisbane. The project won multiple awards and set world records for the Tunnel Boring Machines’ daily, weekly, and monthly progress.
ACCIONA’s Australian vision widened to include water projects like the Adelaide Desalination Plant and water treatment plants near Perth, on the Sunshine Coast and in Tasmania.
ACCIONA BECAME A CARBON-NEUTRAL COMPANY
As part of its commitment to decarbonisation, ACCIONA made a commitment to go carbon neutral at the Paris climate summit in 2015. Since then, the Company has taken the necessary steps to articulate this milestone within the framework of its Sustainability Master Plan. Achieving neutrality has been a key milestone in the roadmap to becoming a truly sustainable company at a global level.
ACCIONA ACQUIRES THE GEOTECH GROUP
In 2017, ACCIONA acquired a majority stake in the Geotech Group. The two businesses brought together family ownership, great cultures and a dedication to innovation and sustainability.
In 1972, Geotech was founded by Gerry Noonan and Jeff Macleod which offered ACCIONA a foothold in Australia’s construction industry.
The new group joined some of Melbourne’s most iconic projects: Collins Place (at the time, the most extensive excavation in the history of Melbourne), Melbourne Underground Rail Loop, Victorian Arts Centre, Citylink and Burnley Tunnel. Within a few short years, Geotech became a leading ground engineering supplier to large constructors whose projects defined the Melbourne cityscape.
As the century turned, a new generation of the Noonan family, brothers Bede and Andre, bought the business from their retiring father, adding rail capability with the acquisition of Coleman Rail in 2002, a leader in Australian rail contracting since 1983, and a mechanical engineering arm with the acquisition of John Beever Australia in 2007, founded in 1979. These three diverse businesses became known as the Geotech Group of companies.
The Geotech Group has delivered key projects such as the Glenelg to Adelaide Tram Line Extension, two Regional Rail Link projects in Melbourne, Preston Tram Depot Redevelopment, Royal Children’s Hospital Basement Retention and the Ballarat Line Upgrade.
ACCIONA ACQUIRES LENDLEASE ENGINEERING
In 2020, ACCIONA acquired Lendlease Engineering, making our shared heritage even greater. With the acquisition came the experience of three Australian giants:
HORNIBROOK: In 1912, Sir Manuel Hornibrook formed his construction company in Brisbane. Some iconic projects include: the William Jolly Bridge and the Story Bridge at Kangaroo Point. After World War Two, Hornibrook intensified their focus on industrial plants, commercial buildings, ports, and public works, particularly tunnelling. In 1962, the firm won stage 2 of the Sydney Opera House: the superstructure.
ABIGROUP: In 1961, G.Abigano Ltd was founded which began to dominate the contracting scene in Sydney and regional areas of New South Wales and Victoria. Major contracts for the F3 and M2 freeways put Abigroup in a position to aggressively pursue and complete contracts around the Sydney Olympic facilities. That propelled Abigroup into the massive M7 road project in 2003. The following year the company was bought out ushering a new era, encompassing new fields such as water, mining, telecommunications, energy, and rail.
BAULDERSTONE: In 1946, Bert Baulderstone founded the construction company in South Australia. In the late 1950s, they embraced civil engineering with bridge work in Victoria, such as the Blanchetown Bridge on the Murray River. Other major projects included the State Art Gallery, Adelaide Teachers College, and the massive Royal Adelaide Hospital Reconstruction. By the mid-1980s, A.W Baulderstone Holdings Pty Ltd was the biggest construction firm in South Australia. The 1984 merger with French construction firm Societe Auxiliaire d ’Entreprises, followed by the acquisition in 1985 of Hornibrook, had Baulderstone competing for the nation’s biggest projects.
ACCIONA AUSTRALIA TODAY
As the long-range milestones come into view – 110 years for Hornibrook, 65 for Abigroup, 50 for Geotech and 20 for ACCIONA’s presence in Australia, we’re constantly aware of the rich history that goes before us and conscious that our decisions today are shaping a legacy for generations to come. Collectively, ACCIONA has built a legacy of sustainable infrastructure projects across Australia and New Zealand, and that transformational work continues.
OUR HISTORY IS ONE OF CONVERGING LINES BUT TOGETHER WE ARE ALL ACCIONA.
OUR PROMISE
TO DESIGN A BETTER PLANET
ACCIONA is a leading global company with a business model based on sustainability. We aim to respond to society's main needs through the provision of renewable energy, infrastructure, water and services. Over our 100-year history we have built a global reputation for delivering complex, large-scale infrastructure and energy projects with a distinctive hallmark for innovation, environmental sustainability and social purpose.