26 June 2025
Several members of the Japan Community Power Association have visited the Basque Country to learn how renewable energy communities are being deployed in our territory.
In addition to Orkestra's Energy Lab, they have held meetings with the Basque Energy Agency, the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, Edinor and Iberdrola.
A delegation of representatives from the Japan Community Power Association visited the Basque Country this week to learn about how renewable energy communities are being deployed in our territory. The Japanese mission was led by its chairperson, Tetsunari Iida, who is also the president of the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies in Tokyo.
Over three days, the delegation met with key institutions and actors in the Basque Country. The visit began on Monday, June 25th, with a working session at the University of Deusto, where they met representatives from Orkestra and the Basque Energy Agency. Jorge Fernández from our Energy and Environment Lab provided background information on energy and environmental issues in the Basque Country, as well as the regulatory framework for self-consumption and energy communities. Oscar Puche Ormaechea introduced the Ekiola energy community model and shared examples of operational projects.
On Tuesday, the Japanese party visited Naturklima, Gipuzkoa Provincial Council's Climate Change Foundation, accompanied by Javier Zuazola, Josu Etxebarria and and Jorge Fernández. They learned about the development of citizen energy communities in Gipuzkoa in collaboration with Edinor, and met with José Ignacio Asensio, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Sustainability at the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa, and Mónica Pedreira, Director of Sustainability of Gipuzkoa, who presented the strategy and policies that are being implemented in the province to foster the creation of energy communities. In addition, the delegation gained insight into the objectives, work and activities carried out at Naturklima from the company's general director, Xabier Esteban. The visit also included the Office for Community Transformation and the Office for Energy Transformation of Gipuzkoa.
Finally, on Wednesday, the delegation visited Iberdrola's headquarters in Bilbao, where Unai Alaña described and discussed the company's solar community model and its Convive program, which aims to improve the social acceptance of renewable energy projects.
Promoting international knowledge exchange
This visit builds on previous interactions between Orkestra and several Japanese stakeholders in the energy and environment sectors, both in Japan and in the Basque Country. In May 2024, a delegation from the Environment Committee of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) visited Orkestra to meet with the Energy Lab team, after reading the report Social acceptance of local renewable energy projects published by the institute and authored by Stephanía Mosquera and Jorge Fernández. In October, Jorge Fernández was invited to present the results of the report at the Annual Conference on Human Rights of the JFBA. He also held meetings on renewable energies and energy policy with leading institutions such as the Japan Research Institute and the Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies.
We are proud to facilitate these international exchanges and continue to exchange knowledge and learn from diverse global experiences in building sustainable, inclusive energy systems. Learn more about our strategic agreements and research networks here.
