Renewable Energy Communities (RECs): many people, families and businesses under one roof

Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) are an innovative model for producing and managing energy resources, with the aim of contributing to the transition to clean energy and reducing polluting emissions. By means of RECs, in collaboration with other people or with companies and administrative bodies, it is possible to actively contribute to the production, sharing and storage of energy. This means less waste, thanks to an innovative energy management model that also stimulates community cohesion. Is it necessary to live in the same building in order to share energy? The Milleproroghe Decree of 2019, which brought RECs to Italy, opened the door to the concept of collective self-consumption. Initially, the scope of sharing was that of the secondary electrical substation in line with the principle of physical proximity. In other words, community members had to to live in the same building or use the same premises. Furthermore, the maximum total power of the renewable plant was 200 kilowatts and so only small plants were allowed. The subsequent Legislative Decree 199 of 2021 went beyond this regulation: the option to go up to 1 megawatt of power for each individual plant was introduced, thereby reaching energy capacities comparable to those of industrial power plants. At the same time, the scope of sharing shifted to the primary electrical substation: as a result, it became possible to share energy between neighborhoods, individual citizens, or even small neighboring municipalities. So, nowadays, community members no longer have to live in the same building to share energy, nor do they have to be in neighboring buildings. Indeed, the basic idea behind the adjustments to the regulations is to encourage the active involvement of citizens so that the energy sharing system becomes increasingly efficient. Where can the plant be set up in order to produce energy? The fundamental element of an REC is the presence of a small or medium-sized power plant (usually photovoltaic) that can produce energy. In addition to the power limits (first 200 kW and then 1 MW) of these plants, the installation area needs to be close to consumers, i.e., in the same municipality or in the same neighborhood (depending on the target area). For example, disused industrial land located on the outskirts of built-up areas is very well suited for this purpose: it is large enough to accommodate a plant and almost always has the necessary regulatory requirements, both in terms of grid connections and safety. It should be made clear that the sharing of self-generated energy must be through the electricity distribution network, so that it can directly contribute to the country's energy needs. Although it may seem contradictory, the energy facility does not have to be directly owned by the Community, but it must be provided by one of its members or a third party. Moreover, renewable energy plants that already existed when Legislative Decree 199/2021 came into force can also be used, but these can only contribute up to a maximum of 30% of the total capacity. What are the benefits of energy communities? Producing, storing, and consuming electricity in the same geographical area through a plant that uses renewable resources makes it possible to reduce waste and lower costs in energy management and transportation. This is particularly effective in a country like Italy, which has many small municipalities sharing the same resources and already has numerous private or small-scale power plants. Over the years, adding together the amounts of energy that will be produced within the small local communities will make an effective contribution to the gradual abandonment of fossil fuels. For these reasons, financial incentives have been introduced by the State in order to encourage citizens to become active energy producers. It is worth pointing out that incentives will be provided both on energy fed into the national grid and on energy shared among community members, and they cover installations of all sizes and types of power (from a few kilowatts up to 1 MW). The virtuous circle triggered by RECs is also enhanced by the development of artificial intelligence software that improves community energy management performance, from monitoring consumption to optimizing balancing through grid flexibility and resource management. All this results in environmental, economic and social benefits, including through a revaluation of the local area that begins precisely with the energy resource. In this way even areas or land that were originally intended for unsustainable industrial use find a new virtuous role in the energy transition process in which we are all involved.

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Renewable Energy Communities (RECs): many people, families and businesses under one roof

Renewable Energy Communities (RECs): many people, families and businesses under one roof

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