Abstract
To mitigate the effects of climate change, the European Commission created a Strategic Energy Technology Plan committing to forming 100 Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) by 2025. These are considered to potentially be major instruments for decarbonization in a just transition. This plan has led to some districts being defined as PEDs, although none have fully met the criteria to be a PED yet. Research shows that new forms of energy ownership and production, as could potentially be found in PEDs, could help reduce energy poverty, which affects a significant segment of the population, as households can reduce their energy expenditure as well as improve their energy behavior. This paper set out to shed light on the PED landscape, investigating the barriers and opportunities to PED creation in Spain and its potential to mitigate energy poverty. We conducted a literature review on community-owned energy in Spain, followed with expert interviews (energy researchers, stakeholders, and NGOs) who focus on sustainability issues in Spain. Results show a number of barriers (lack of knowledge and awareness, and lack of trust from consumers) and opportunities connected with the creation of PEDs. In conclusion, policymaker engagement and support play a key role in successfully implementing PEDs.
Highlights
A significant decline in the costs associated with PV production and innovative PV efficiency improvements, coupled with the high number of solar days makes a strong case for PV energy in Spain [1] to meet and exceed national energy requirements [2].until 2018, regressive legislation ( RD900/2015) protected dominant market interests and penalized PV energy production
Understanding that the current situation for Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) positions firmly within the niche level, we examine each of the social opportunity spaces and what the barriers and opportunities for PEDs are with energy justice in mind, understanding that not all forms of energy justice will be displayed within each capital
There seem to be clear regional differences in Spain which may reflect political differences, as well as urban-rural differences, which may be exacerbated as urban areas are growing rapidly [116]
Summary
A significant decline in the costs associated with PV production and innovative PV efficiency improvements, coupled with the high number of solar days makes a strong case for PV energy in Spain [1] to meet and exceed national energy requirements [2].until 2018, regressive legislation ( RD900/2015) protected dominant market interests and penalized PV energy production. A significant decline in the costs associated with PV production and innovative PV efficiency improvements, coupled with the high number of solar days makes a strong case for PV energy in Spain [1] to meet and exceed national energy requirements [2]. Ended taxation on self-production, and defined the conditions for creating energy communities in Spain [1]. In a concerted attempt to speed up the decarbonization of urban areas within the EU, a project to establish 100 Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) in Europe by the year 2025 [3] was set in motion by the Joint Programming Initiative Urban Europe [4]. PEDs are defined as highly energy efficient districts that are wholly powered by Renewably Energy Technology ( RET), and produce a yearly net surplus of energy, whilst offering affordable living for residents [5]. The concept of PEDs arose as a natural extension from pre-existing low-carbon developments, such as Positive Energy Buildings [4] and Positive Energy
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