On March 2, 2021, at 9:00 am, a press conference was held in the Mondragón Main Hall of Culture to present the GUIDE developed within the SHREC project. The aim of the GUIDE is to raise public awareness and inform about self-consumption through photovoltaics.
The press conference was attended by the Mayor of Mondragón, Maria Ubarretxena, and Councilor Edurne Unamuno; Ms. Eukene Barrenetxea of the ACEDE-Basque Electrical Appliance Cluster and Aritz Ameztegi, Head of Energy at the Debagoiena 2030 Platform. The following local media were present: Diario Vasco, Noticias de Gipuzkoa, Mondraberri and Goiena.
The aim of the European SHREC initiative is to raise public awareness of renewable energy generation facilities in homes in Mondragón and to provide accurate and transparent information on the subject.
Committed to the energy transition and moving towards a renewable energy sector, since 2019 Mondragón has been working on a European project called SHREC - Shifting toward Renewable Energy for the transition to low carbon energy. This project is being developed as part of the Interreg Europe program and promotes the transition to a low-carbon monoxide energy model in companies, neighbourhood communities and private homes.
To carry out this project, Mondragón City Council is constantly working and after completing the driving force for this project last January, this time it has launched a campaign to promote the implementation of renewable energy in homes to raise public awareness and provide practical information on photovoltaic energy production. In this way, Mondragón can continue to take steps towards an energy transition.
Mayor Maria Ubarretxena emphasized that “the aim is to continue on the path that combines a vision of sustainability, local development and urban attractiveness in municipal public policies. In the town of Mondragón, we must also pave the way for ecological transformation by promoting renewable energies and reducing our carbon footprint. It is essential to make a rapid and effective transformation, always bearing in mind that this path must be pursued in a fair transitional model. In order to carry out the transformation in a shared way, we want to provide the citizen with resources and information”.
To this end, the City Council, together with ACEDE-Cluster del Electrodomestico de Euskadi (H-Enea Living Lab), has prepared a practical guide with information on self-consumption options, subsidies for the installation of renewable energy and/or allowances, among others.
“When it comes to making the leap towards the energy transition, it is essential that we all come together and that it is very important to have awareness and transparent information on the subject. This is the main aim of this initiative, to make the public aware of all the opportunities available and the opportunities involved, as well as the commitments involved,” explained the City Council.
A leaflet on the subject has recently been distributed to all households with basic information. The guide is available here.
Mention that the next steps in this “Photovoltaics at Home” project will be led by the D2030 Platform, which will pilot the facilities in the communities of Mondragón and the region. Mondragón City Council has continued to take part in this initiative as a member of the D2030 Platform.
