La Graciosa’s ambitious goal for energy sovereignty
La Graciosa is on the cusp of achieving energy sovereignty within this decade, with a clear target set for 2030. To make this vision a reality, construction will begin next year on a solar-powered desalination plant. This will be complemented by the creation of a local energy market and a mobility plan designed to optimize the needs of the island’s inhabitants. This groundbreaking initiative is driven by ICONIC, a pioneering European project funded by Brussels that will also benefit two other EU island communities—one in Ireland and one in Italy.
A community-driven European project
The technical team from the program recently visited the island to finalize the roadmap alongside the newly established La Graciosa energy community. This path is set to significantly enhance the quality of life for all 718 residents of the eighth official Canary Island. The ICONIC team is coordinated by María Ruiz, a professional from the consultancy R2M Spain. Born in Madrid and raised in Barcelona, Ruiz has islander blood, as her parents are from Gran Canaria.
The overarching goal, she explains, “is energy independence and climate neutrality through renewable technologies and intelligent resource management.” However, the primary challenge is water: “achieving water sovereignty in 2027 with the construction of a desalination plant.” The project actively fosters social innovation and circular economy models, making the involvement of the local community a fundamental pillar of the ICONIC philosophy (Innovative Communities On Neutral Islands for Climate).
From proposal to implementation
“From the very start of our proposal,” the initiative’s author informs, “we have worked hand-in-hand with the people of La Graciosa. For us, it is essential that people want to stay in their homeland.” Backed by her company, Ruiz presented the ICONIC project to the EU in September 2024. It was approved in December and officially launched in May of this year. Just six months later, Ruiz and the project partners—including Boreal Light GmbH, GeoAI Analytics, Traza, the University of Galway, and the Government of the Canary Islands—returned to La Graciosa to assess progress and maintain momentum.
The project, with a budget of seven million euros to be shared across the three pilot territories—La Graciosa, Inis Mór (Ireland), and Berchidda (Italy)—has a three-year implementation window.
Local expertise and cautious optimism
Ginés Díaz Pallares, a respected figure with a long history of environmental activism, is a director of the La Graciosa Energy Community. Naturally, he is motivated by the proposal from the young team led by María Ruiz Díaz-Reixa. However, as a seasoned veteran, he has seen many promising projects come to nothing or, at best, only be partially realized. He believes now is different because this initiative does not originate from politicians.
Ginés describes La Graciosa with a powerful metaphor: “La Graciosa is like a fetus.” The island is nourished by water and electricity from Lanzarote via a subsea pipeline and cable that act as an umbilical cord. Long before ICONIC arrived, the people of La Graciosa had already begun their own initiatives through the association El Sol de La Graciosa, with the ultimate goal of “achieving the highest possible level of water and energy autonomy by 2030.” The R2M Spain project will now facilitate the journey towards that goal.
The quest for water sovereignty
The Berlin-based firm Boreal Light GmbH is tasked with designing and building the desalination plant. Currently, the project is in the phase of obtaining permits from the Canarian administrations. “We are in permanent contact with the technical teams of the Regional Government, the Lanzarote Island Council, and the Teguise Town Council, with whom we maintain fluid dialogue,” asserts Ginés Díaz, to ensure the plant becomes a reality by 2027.
The plant will be installed next to the old water treatment plant that ceased operation in the early 1990s when a pipeline was built to supply water from Lanzarote. This “umbilical cord” has a history of frequent failures; in 2022 alone, it broke down six times, leaving the island without supply for weeks. The community relied on water cisterns to mitigate these adversities. El Sol de La Graciosa aspires to transform the old desalination plant, with its abandoned machinery inside, into a cultural and community space, preserving this relic of industrial archaeology.
Beyond water: energy and circular economy
ICONIC’s scope extends far beyond its primary water objective. In its first six months, a sociological study with detailed surveys was conducted to understand the needs and priorities of La Graciosa’s inhabitants. The foundations have also been laid for a local energy market, designed to share the surplus solar energy captured through photovoltaic panels. The installation of wind turbines is prohibited on the island due to the potential impact on birds.
María Ruiz’s team has designed a program to encourage self-consumption of electricity through the installation of solar panels on both public facilities and private homes. The circular economy is another key goal. “With the non-potable water from the desalination plant,” Ruiz explains, “we can make ice for the fishermen’s guild or irrigate plants.” Ginés Díaz imagines the desalination plant “should function like the village fountain” for tourists, encouraging them to “fill their aluminum bottles to eliminate plastic containers,” adds the ICONIC technician.
Mapping mobility and building community
The third strategic pillar of this EU-funded project is the design of mobility plans for an island where paved roads are non-existent. “We are mapping the population’s needs to optimize their resources,” says Ruiz. Díaz Pallarés believes “with this initiative we can position ourselves in research, expanding our experience to try and consume the best desalinated water in the world.”
All of this, Ginés concludes, “must lead us to create community, a meeting point for management and learning.” This reflection is deeply connected to the program’s philosophy, as “ICONIC integrates a solid component of Social Sciences and Humanities throughout its entire methodology, especially through a transformative governance approach oriented towards learning.” The project establishes Municipal Climate Working Groups and Multi-Actor Climate Assemblies in each pilot area, fostering inclusive deliberation, institutional learning, and capacity development. These novel structures seek to integrate social innovation and stakeholder participation at the core of climate action, ensuring the proposed solutions are not only technically effective but also culturally appropriate, socially accepted, and economically viable.
