Performance of Carros de Foc during the Spanish Week./ Photo: AC/E
The Diplomat. 12/09/2017
More than 500,000 people visited Spain’s Pavilion at the Expo 2017 Astana during the three months it was open, a number exceeding the expectations of this International Exhibition dedicated to Future Energy.
The exhibition, which closed its doors on Sunday, gathered 137 official participants -115 countries and 22 international organizations‑ interested in promulgating a transformation of the current energy model into a more sustainable, efficient and diversified one.
After its inauguration by Felipe VI three months ago, on 10 June, the Spanish site, designed and built by Acciona and Frade Arquitectos and coordinated by Acción Cultural Española (AC/E, the public organization responsible for managing our country’s presence in international exhibitions), was presented under the slogan Spain. Energy for the Planet.
The Pavilion’s objective, according to AC/E, was “stating the important role played by our country in the development of renewable energy and contributing to the development of the Expo’s main concept, showing the world how and why Spain is using this type of energy and its commitment to the environment”.
The exhibition concluded on Sunday, three months after the inauguration by King Felipe VI of the Spanish site
One of the top moments was Spain’s Week, celebrated in July and inaugurated by the president of the Congress of Deputies, Ana Pastor, standing out the performance of the Flamenco Company and the street theatre company Carros de Foc, and the participative readings of Don Quixote in Russian.
Other outstanding participants, as well as the King, who was in charge of the inauguration, were the Foreign Minister, Alfonso Dastis, the High Commissioner of the Government for Marca España, Carlos Espinosa de los Monteros, and Spain’s Ambassador to Kazakhstan, Pedro Sanz, as well as Fernando Benzo, president of Acción Cultural Española, secretary of State for Culture and commissioner of the Pavilion.
On the Kazakh side were the Prime Minister, Bakytzhan Sagintayev, the president of the Senate, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, the vice-president of the Congress, Gulmira Isimbayeva, and the Minister of Economy, Timur Suleimenov, among others.
Spain’s Pavilion, whose central space included three areas dedicated to renewable energy, specific energy projects conceived and implemented in Spain and the technological capacity and experience of Spanish companies, had a surface of 868 square metres and it attracted 511,003 visitors, according to data of AC/E.
