This week, women in Solar Europe (Wisu) give a voice to Miriam Rodríguez, president of Spain’s Electra Energy S. Coop. She says that one of the most striking inequalities she encountered during her career was the difference in salaries between men and women in comparable roles, the gap of gender payments. “At a certain point I discovered that a male colleague earned a higher salary at the same company level. Fortunately, he realized the unfairness and the salaries were adjusted, “she says.
The sun sector is more open to women than many other traditional industries. As an industrial engineer in renewable energy sources for almost 30 years, I often found myself among the few women in a men’s room. However, as the solar industry grew – winding wind and other renewable technologies – it became a sector where women found more opportunities and a stronger sense of connectedness. Nowadays we see incredible female PV installers, women leading energy communities and female board members who shape the future of clean energy. This natural evolution to gender balance and inclusiveness is something to be proud of, because it strengthens both industry and society as a whole.
Despite this progress, there is still a lot of work to do to enable women to achieve leadership and decision -making roles. Society is evolving and young women make choices about their education and career, determining the future of our sector. When I first entered the industry for renewable energy, I was almost always the only woman in the room. In the late nineties, when I launched a recruitment campaign for renewable energy, no wife applied. But by the early 2000s, when I built another team, talented female engineers finally emerged. What a difference it made! Time and again experience has proven that various, inclusive teams create better work environments and produce stronger results.
My journey in renewable energy started with a deep feeling of goal. After completing my diploma in the Canary Islands, in Spain, I received a European subsidy to work in the Renewable Energy Center in Greece. My passion for sustainability had already led me to do innovative European projects about desalinating seawater and renewable energy sources, so that engineering was always integrated with nature. With this possibility I was able to stay in Greece and set up a Spanish wind energy company at a crucial moment – the liberalization of the electricity market.
During my career I recorded management roles and I always strive to build gender-balanced and inclusive teams. However, reaching gender diversity within my teams was one thing – changing the wider industrial landscape was a different challenge. For years I was the only woman in the associations of renewable energy, utilities, operators of the transmission system and regulatory authorities, all overwhelming by men.
One of the most striking inequalities that I encountered during my career was the difference in salaries between men and women in comparable roles, the gap of gender payments. At one point I discovered that a male colleague earned a higher salary at the same company level. Fortunately, he realized the unfairness and the salaries were adjusted. It was a small but important moment – good that individual actions can make a difference, even within an uneven system. I was lucky to work with great male colleagues who supported honesty, strengthening the idea that gender equality benefits everyone in the workplace.
My career took a new direction after the renewable energy sources and the economic crisis in Europe. I moved from multinational companies and shareholders-driven companies to co-founder of Electra Energy Cooperative in Greece. With a team of young, inspiring engineers and multidisciplinary experts, we wanted to enable citizens to produce and consume their own renewable energy. Since 2016 I have been President of Electra Energy Cooperative in Greece, as a decision by the Balanced Board or Directors for strengthening women in the renewable energy sector.
This journey has shown me that we have to make an effort to create a truly inclusive and fair industry while progress is taking place. Renewable energy is not just about technology or companies – it is about people, communities and a shared mission to build a sustainable future for everyone. And women must include that future at every level.
Miriam Rodríguez-Ruiz is an industrial engineer from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with a career that includes more than 25 years in the renewable energy sector. She started her journey in 1997 in Cres-Ntua in Greece, where she lived for 25 years. In 1999 she joined Gamesa as a business director, and by 2000 she founded Gamesa Energy Greece. Her leadership in the industry took place in 2007 when she became Wind Business Development Director at Rokas Renewables, Iberdrola. In 2016, driven by her dedication to sustainable energy and community pointing, she founded Electra Energy Cooperative and has served President since then. She is actively involved in the renewable energy sector as a member of the Hellenic Wind Association and one of the founders of the Hellenic Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Greece. Since 2017 she has been based in Madrid, where she acts as director-general of the Spanish-Greek Chamber of Commerce. She is also a dedicated advocate for gender equality in the energy sector, which guides and support women through the Spanish Association of Women for Energy (Aemener), where it represents the organization on the European Commission’s equality platform. Moreover, she is a member of the Wisu network and member and mentor at the Coiim Energy Commission and an active participant in women in energy transition (law). Looking ahead, in 2025, she officially registered Electra Energy S. Coop. In Spain, its impact on the cooperative energy movement is further expanding. In addition to her professional performance, she is also a proud mother of three.
Interested in becoming a member Miriam Rodríguez And other leaders and experts in the industry at women in Solar Europe? More information: www.wiseu.network
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