Abengoa bankruptcy threatens Spanish banks
The bankruptcy of Spain's renewable energy firm, Abengoa, highlights transition difficulties for energy firms to stable and solvent renewable energy companies.  It also, more poignantly, reveals how connected the economy is and how turbulence in the energy sector could easily spread to other sectors of the economy, thereby creating a broader economic slowdown at any given point. The company's declaration of bankruptcy sent Spanish banking shares tumbling due to concerns that the banks left holding Abengoa's debt may now face heavy losses and low recovery rates.  As the Financial Times pointed out last month, "we don't believe that this should be viewed as a one-off.  To our minds, the events here show that Spanish banks have yet to take losses on a lot of debt". Spanish banks are still reeling from the Eurozone crisis, and these developments will not help their quest for profitability and stability.

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