Renewable energy communities optimal design supported by an optimization model for investment in PV/wind capacity and renewable electricity sharing

Abstract

The EU Renewable Energy Directive 2018/2001 (RED II) has unlocked the participation of local citizens and authorities in collective renewable energy projects through the concept of Renewable Energy Communities (REC). In this context, the present study proposes an optimization model to support REC's investment decisions on the renewable generation portfolio and operational electricity sharing management.The model presented follows an annualized investment optimization approach considering that one REC member can invest in additional renewable generation. A case study of a REC with three members is presented in a framework of four scenarios and results are discussed using the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and the marginal realized price concepts. A sensitivity analysis is also performed to address the interannual variability of the solar and wind resources.In the base case scenario, which corresponds to the site-specific conditions of the investing REC member, an overall net revenue of 87 k€/year was computed. The sensitivity analysis for this scenario showed that the investment is more sensitive to the solar resource, with revenues changing between −3.3% and 0.1% in comparison with the average resource availability.This paper contributes to the existing literature by identifying the main drivers behind the optimal investment decision of a REC, which result from the relationship between the marginal realized price and the levelized cost of the electricity generated by each renewable technology. The results supported by the present model reinforce the benefits of RECs as enablers for the deployment of renewable generation, thus contributing to the decarbonization of the energy systems.