Energy communities are cooperatives that allow citizens to participate in the production of energy, through clean or renewable sources, boosting their income, protecting the environment and promoting energy democracy.
Energy democracy means that energy production is not only for a few big “players”, but for all of us. We, the people along with local governments and small and medium businesses, shape the terms of energy transition to an economy without fossil fuels ourselves, with fairness and equity.
Through the existing favorable institutional framework, an energy community can:
Operate a photovoltaic system installed in a building or install and operate a solar park for virtual net metering for the community members (e.g. households in apartment buildings, small businesses etc.).
Install and operate a solar park along with the local authority or Government or with a private energy provider for energy social policy reasons.
The energy community’s members along with the local authority or Government can install and operate a wind farm for virtual net metering or to sale the energy in the network.
Install and operate a biomass or biogas unit in order to produce energy from an agricultural community and manage the supply chain.
Install and operate a greenhouse along with an energy co-production unit.
Install and operate any Renewable Energy Source system combined with an energy storage system.
Install and operate desalination units combined with Renewable Energy Sources.