Solabria

0:18 Introduction
0:59 Can you explain how the ENERPLUS initiative came about, and why the name changed?
2:12 Solabria is a cooperative for the commercialization of 100% renewable electrical energy. How and why did this organization come to exist?
3:25 Is there any relationship or link between the creation of Solabria and 15M?
4:32 Why did you choose the legal structure of a cooperative to start this process?
5:43 Is this a non-profit cooperative?
7:26 What are the advantages of having chosen the cooperative structure in terms of internal coordination, management, and operations?
8:50 How many cooperatives are there working in the renewable energy market in Spain? On what scale/s are they operating?
10:17 You mentioned Unión Renovables. Can you explain how this network of cooperatives is organized?
10:39 Is there any relationship between the energy cooperatives that are part of Unión Renovables and the Red de Redes de Economía Alternativa y Solidaria (REAS), ethical finance models such as COOP57, and ethical banking organizations like Fiare?
11:19 The energy we consume requires production, transportation, distribution, and commercialization. Can a cooperative like Solabria produce, transport, distribute, and commercialize energy?
12:59 Who controls the processes of production, transportation, distribution, and commercialization of electricity in the Spanish State?
17:18 What are some of the problems related to the oligopoly of the energy market in the Spanish State?
20:22 What can we do on an individual level to short-circuit the abuses in this system?
21:16 Is it legal in the Spanish State to install solar panels on homes or find ways to independently produce electricity using renewable energy sources?
23:51 Who can or should have access to a discounted rate?
26:22 Is electricity a social right?
27:21 What steps does a cooperative need to take to start commercializing renewable energy?
31:33 Solabria isn’t a cooperative energy producer itself, but on your website you offer counseling for any person to become a producer of energy for self-supply. Can you explain that idea?
33:22 Is there any cooperative in the Spanish State that is both a commercialization company and a producer of electrical energy?
34:51 Are there municipal energy commercialization entities?
35:52 What types of members get involved in Solabria, and how do you know each other?
38:07 What service do the cooperative members receive once they join Solabria?
38:45 What difference is there between Solabria and other energy commercializing companies?
39:27 You also organize educational activities through Solabria in formal and informal educational spaces to explain the advantages of the cooperative model and the importance of getting behind a sustainable and renewable energy model. Can you describe these educational activities?
41:25 Can schools in the Spanish State enter into electricity contracts with Solabria?
42:46 Who leads Solabria’s educational activities?
44:07 Outside of formal educational spaces, do you also work to educate people in institutions and public administration?
45:34 What relationship do you have to the professional sector?
46:30 Is there a subsidy system in the Spanish State that helps democratize installation of the equipment that produces the energy we consume? Are those subsidies available to everyone?
49:12 What are we paying for when we pay our electricity bill through a cooperative like Solabria? How about when we pay it through one of the oligopoly companies that dominate the electricity market in the Spanish State?
51:51 Who establishes the price of the kilowatt now?
53:03 Are Solabria’s prices within reach for all people?
53:30 What would happen if cooperatives like Solabria took over the energy contracts for all the homes in this country?
53:55 What happens when a person or family can’t pay what they owe to an oligopoly company? Does the cooperative sector respond to nonpayment in the same way?
55:33 Why has the public service been lost?
56:19 What are we talking about when we talk about green energy, renewable energy, and sustainable energy?
1:01:44 What are some of the most important debates in the energy sector?
1:03:24 Who are the main producers of renewable energy in Spain?
1:04:23 How does a cooperative entity like Solabria understand the concepts of “profit” and “profitability?”
1:05:33 What have been the local governments’ institutional responses to the coming energy transition?
1:07:23 Keeping in mind all that you’ve explained, and considering the proposals that are emerging, it’s clear that we stand in support of a systems change, not just an energy transition. What thoughts do you have on that?
1:08:12 What challenges and advice can you share from your experience and process as a cooperative?
1:11:45 Is Solabria a political project? If so, what kind of politics are we talking about?
1:12:20 How do you keep hope alive?