Background

e-swissolar

We exist to work at the intersection between transformative technologies and renewable energies. We are passionate to work on the creation of innovative financing instruments, decentralised energy networks or energy marketplaces. We aim to create sustainable value across the whole energy value chain for our stakeholders and for the society.

DAO

A Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) is an organization whose rules are in computer code. DAOs are performed according to computer-coded rules (smart contracts), for example on a blockchain, and are subject to the joint work of their employees and members of the organization [1]. On the 27. & 28 März 2022 during the Open Legal Lab we created a legal structure for a DAO that will facilitate direct investments in PV-Systems in Switzerland that is Blockchain compatible and legally compliant.

Energy Communities

e-swissolar AG believes that energy cooperatives are highly relevant for the energy transition. An energy cooperative is a non-profit organisation whose purpose is to locally produce and deliver renewable energy to its stakeholder or members. Members jointly own and democratically control the cooperative. Cooperatives around the world share the same seven principles, which are based on values such as democracy, equality and solidarity.

Watch the video about the 7 cooperative principles:

ReFi

In 2021 in collaboration with the HSLU Institute of Innovation and Technology Management an Innocheque for e-swissolar’s innovative idea ReFi -Regenerative Finance for Smart Energy Communities (54557.1 INNO-EE) has been conducted. ReFi is an investment platform built on top of a blockchain network that has the potential to efficiently and cost-effectively mobilise and redirect funds to small-scale projects owned by private persons or energy communities not eligible for traditional funding sources. Fractional ownership-enabled tokenisation and decentalised finance has the potential to unlock investment at various levels from retail investors to institutional investors with less risk due to a liquidity lending pool. This peer-to-contract (many-to-many) borrowing/lending scheme with blockchain yields a faster financing process with no underwriting and due diligence costs. ReFi offers transparency, collaboration and fair governance for domestic energy communities, public and private investors, and DSOs as a first step; with endless possibilities that can be built on top later. In 2021 e-swissolar developed a prototype deployed on the AURORA blockchain testnet.

Distributed Autonomous Cooperative (DisCoo)

We are currently working on the development of the core architecture of the smart-contracts system and of the smart-contracts trying to build up a minimum prototype (backend) of a legally compliant decentralised autonomous cooperative.

More information will follow soon...

Pilot

More information will follow soon...

Problem

Financing

A big barrier slowing the development of both new and existing energy communities is the lack of accessible, targeted and consistent funding and financing. REScoop identified following barriers:

- Limited access to bank financing and financing tools

- Lack of financing tools for initiating energy communities

Manage Stakeholders & Resources

Energy cooperatives are relaying on the active participation of citizens and the involvement of multiple stakeholders (local authorities, local economic players, other cooperatives, etc.). Some citizens become members of the cooperatives, i.e. owners and users of the cooperative. Following challenges have been identified in this regard REScoop:

- Organisation of members

- Information and transperancy

Solution

Financing

- Create specific financing tools for energy communities

Manage Stakeholders & Resources

- Innovative Tools for Governance

Challenge

In the context of the identified problems and proposed solutions, what are the design criteria and patterns (elements) that constitute the SolarDAO. We will use the DAO Canvas developed by Felipe Duarte. The canvas is to guide groups through the process of making the most vital decisions they face in the process of imagining their DAO. We created a miro-board where we will collectively work on the DAO canvas. Further data about energy cooperatives will be provided during the event.

DAO Development Canvas

Click on picture to enlarge

References

[1] Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) as subjects of law - The recognition of DAOs in the Swiss legal order

[2] Schmid, Benjamin; Seidl, Irmi (2022). Energy Cooperatives in Switzerland: Survey Results // Energiegenossenschaften in der Schweiz: Befragungsergebnisse. EnviDat.

Call for Action

We are looking for energy & tech-enthusiasts, -students, energy cooperatives, municipalities or utilities who are interested to explore with us new ways of using transformative technologies for realising the energy strategy 2050. You will help us to design right solutions for energy cooperatives.

Challenge slides

Vasileios Panagiotidis|e-swissolar AG , Poststrasse 9, 6300 Zug