Community Renewable Energy Research Articles

Renewable energy community design and evaluation according to the Italian regulation

The target of a Renewable Energy Community (REC) is to improve the renewable energy consumption without forcing the grid to work as a power backup and avoid the installation of large energy storage systems. The paper proposes a comparison between different REC configurations with the same annual energy consumption of 500 MWh corresponding to about 200 residential houses in northern Italy. The comparison includes different kinds of building destination (residential, commercial, industrial), and different photovoltaic (PV) installed capacity. The results highlight the fundamental role of a proper design of the Renewable Energy Community configuration. RECs based on members with complementary loads enhance the renewable energy consumption by increasing the fraction of shared energy. Different roles (consumer and prosumer) are fundamental to provide the proper energy distribution during the sunny hours by producing a win-win condition. Nevertheless, an increase of the PV capacity can produce a detrimental effect on the shared energy ratio due the non-contemporaneity of production and consumption.

The maximization of shared energy in RECs in disadvantaged areas in terms of population density: the case study of Osidda in Sardinia

Even if the first examples of free associations of citizens for the exploitation of local energy resources date back to the end of the nineteenth century, it is with the EU Directive 2018/2001 RED II that the concept of Renewable Energy Community is introduced for the first time. It is an association of ordinary citizens, commercial activities, public administrations, small and medium-sized enterprises, aimed at the production and maximization of the use of energy produced on site. Alongside the social (greater energy independence, awareness of environmental issues) and environmental (promotion of renewable energy and reduction of CO2 emissions) aspects, the economic one is equally relevant in order to contribute to the dissemination of RES, maximizing its self-consumed share in the production site and therefore reducing the loads of overproduction on the transmission network.In this paper, the authors analyze in detail the regulatory aspects and the technological solutions that are contributing to the diffusion of these communities at national level, also in the light of the recent ARERA Resolution for widespread self-consumption. The critical issues associated with their implementation in disadvantaged area in terms of population density will be discussed. The case study of the Municipality of Osidda in Sardinia will be presented, where the provision of social services and the achievement of energy independence represent the tools to combat the rapid depopulation suffered in recent years. The model developed by the authors starts from an initial careful collection of data, aimed at overcoming the problems of measuring and estimating the energy consumption of very different users (residential and public), identifying the possible solutions able to maximize the shared energy produced by RES, inside the RECs and consequently the economic return connected to national economic incentives.

Key Economic Drivers Enabling Municipal Renewable Energy Communities’ Benefits in the Italian Context

Community energy is a buzzword that has historically included various type of experiences. In 2018, the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) legally defined renewable energy communities (RECs). Based on the first pilot projects and on the Italian legal framework, a possible REC configuration of municipal initiative with a high replicability potential is one in which a photovoltaic system is installed in educational buildings and shares energy with neighbouring residential consumers. This analysis presents an economical evaluation of different possible scenarios depending on variables such as solar radiation, system capacity, fraction of self-consumption within the REC, installation costs and energy prices. All the scenarios identified and analysed show positive economic indexes, although the energy and economic results may significantly vary depending on the variables studied. In the analysed case studies, the Net Present Value (after 20 years) is between kEUR 51 and kEUR 478; the internal rate of return is between 9.5% and 88%; the payback time is between 13.6 years and 1.1 years. The results of this analysis are relevant as they allow us to better understand the critical factors that can enable REC in providing local economic and social benefits to have a real impact on energy poverty or on the provision of local social services.

Technical evaluation of European and North American sustainable benchmark scenarios based on renewable Local energy Communities penetration

The growing electrification and renewable energies integration, driven by global sustainability and efficiency objectives, foster future scenarios providing actors such as distributed energy resources, storage, and active consumers with a crucial role in the energy transition. The aim of this work is to assess the impact on distribution networks of the emergence and proliferation of sustainable Local Energy Communities. The methodology employed in this study uses quasi-dynamic simulations based on scenarios involving varying levels of electric demand and low voltage networks under both business-as-usual and Local Energy Communities-based conditions. This approach enables quantification of key indicators and provides insight into the technical impact of Local Energy Communities integration in distribution networks considering European and North American benchmark cases as reference systems. The results obtained allow concluding that reference systems with meshed topologies can withstand electric demand growth with less severe impacts compared to radial systems. Furthermore, the integration of sustainable Local Energy Communities provides improvements, of different level for each scenario, in voltage profiles (kept within operation limits), overloads (up to 50% reduction) and technical losses (up to 37% reduction).

THE EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE ON TIN PEROVSKITE SOLAR CELL USING SCAPS 1D

Perovskite solar cell (PSC) has become a force to reckon with in the renewable energy community because of its performance and low cost of production. Solar energy is one of the most demanding renewable sources of electricity. Electricity production using photovoltaic technology, not only helps meet the growing demand for energy, but also contributes to mitigate global climate change by reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Simulation is based on a mathematical design that describes the system. Numerical simulation technique of solar cells devices has over the years proven to be a viable tool for observing and understanding the properties of solar cell devices such as the optical, electrical and mechanical properties of complex solar cell devices. It also helps to reduce processing cost and time spent on solar cell device fabrication by providing useful information on how to vary the production parameters to improve the device performance. Solar cell capacitance simulator in one dimension (SCAPS-1D) was used in the modeling and simulation of sandwiched perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with a planar hetero-junction structure in the arrangement of the sandwiched model (FTO/CdS/CH3NH3SnI3/HTM). The energy band diagram, I-V characteristics and other parameters was obtained. The configuration for better performance was then determined, from which further simulations were carried out. When the operating temperature was varied the result shows an overall efficiency of 24.25%, FF of 82.80%, JSC of 30.73mA/cm2, VOC of 0.95V was obtained.

Addressing Challenges and Outcomes in the Biogas Sector: An Analysis of Efficiency, Economic Savings, and Environmental Impacts Using an Advanced SWOT Model

This study, through the use of company data, offers an in-depth analysis of the current situation and future prospects of biogas plants and how they can promote economic advantages and environmental benefits. The geographical context of the Piana del Sele (Salerno, Italy) was chosen on the basis of objective criteria, including its relevance in the agro-industrial sector and the availability of accurate and reliable company data that was collected through IT systems, including software business performance monitoring and digital data analysis. This choice was fundamental to guaranteeing the validity and representativeness of our analyses and results. From a methodological point of view, mathematical formulas and algorithms were used, which allowed the calculation of the biogas producibility indices by type of biomass as well as the quantification of the effluents produced to then estimate the quantification of the biogas and the interconnected economic savings. Furthermore, this study uses the SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) approach in an innovative way by integrating renewable energy communities into it. The aim is to demonstrate the potential of biogas plants and how energy communities can transform weaknesses and threats into opportunities. The results show that the integration of biogas plants into the farm environment offers considerable potential, and although it is a challenge for small and medium-sized farms, it could bring energy self-sufficiency and economic surplus. Furthermore, the integration of renewable energy communities would be able to promote the diversification of energy supply and transform weaknesses and threats into opportunities.

Citizen participation gaps and challenges in the heating transition: Learning from Dutch community initiatives

The European Union has recognized the significance of community energy initiatives in the energy transition and introduced legislation to promote active consumer participation and renewable energy communities. The Netherlands, with its transition away from natural gas, serves as a valuable case study for understanding the challenges and processes of local ownership and participation in community energy initiatives. The research aims to address the dual challenge of defining local ownership and participation and exploring case-specific applications of these concepts. To achieve this, the study employs the Socio-Ecological Systems Framework and literature on participation, providing a theoretical foundation for analyzing citizen engagement. A mixed-methods approach, including interviews and data collection, is used to examine five Dutch community heating initiatives. The analysis highlights the importance of an enabling participatory environment, inclusive participation, information sharing, and the presence of energy cooperatives for successful citizen engagement. The findings have practical implications for EU energy policy, emphasizing the need for clear definitions, inclusive decision-making processes, and tailored engagement strategies.

DESIGN METHODOLOGY OF A HYBRID RENEWABLE ENERGY MICROGRID FOR AN ISOLATED RURAL COMMUNITY. APPLICATION CASE IN ZAMBIA

This article proposes a methodology for the design of off-grid electricity systems based on renewable energies in rural of developing countries communities that never consumed electricity. The state of the art is reviewed and the methodology aggregates proposals from multiple previous works. It is divided into phases: Data Collection, Assessment, Planning/Modelling and Execution. The main actors and their responsibilities are explained. Rarely considered stages such as co-design with the beneficiary community or the creation of a renewable energy community are included. Their necessity for the implementation and success of these projects with social, economic and environmental objectives is discussed. The application of the methodology is illustrated with first results from a case study in Mumbeji, Zambia, Africa. The project stakeholders, the results of demand curve estimation, power generation curves, available resources, engineering costs and the modelling of the microgrid design are presented. Keywords: Hybrid renewable energy systems; Rural electrification; Off-grid rural communities, Energy simulation.

Renewable energy communities as public architectures and socio-ecological infrastructures

Three years after their establishment in the Italian regulatory framework, the Renewable Energy Communities (CERs) can be an important resource for architectural and urban design, combining decarbonisation and climate resilience objectives with the provision of new public spaces and social services, the reduction of energy poverty and the dissemination of a new environmental culture. In such a setting, the production networks spread over buildings and elements of urban equipment are connected to the new central venues constituted by the hubs, the heart of the community. Starting from the case study of the San Giovanni a Teduccio district in Naples, the Horizon Europe KNOWING project aims to define a replicable model to support a strategic vision for 2050.

Energy Communities: energy and economic development laboratories in the Tortona valleys

Clean Energy for All Europeans, Green Deal and Fit for 55 at European level and the Piano Nazionale Integrato per l’Energia e il Clima have identified essential decarbonisation goals that are achievable by broadening the audience of actors involved and the ability to innovate in terms of the evolution of products/services and production processes. In this sense, decentralised energy production technologies together with Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) and bottom-up initiatives play a strategic role in the establishment of local energy systems. The objective of the paper is to illustrate these dynamisms within the territorial system, and the characteristics of local initiatives and RECs as means of energy transition and economic development.

Optimal Design and Analysis of a Hybrid Hydrogen Energy Storage System for an Island-Based Renewable Energy Community

Installations of decentralised renewable energy systems (RES) are becoming increasing popular as governments introduce ambitious energy policies to curb emissions and slow surging energy costs. This work presents a novel model for optimal sizing for a decentralised renewable generation and hybrid storage system to create a renewable energy community (REC), developed in Python. The model implements photovoltaic (PV) solar and wind turbines combined with a hybrid battery and regenerative hydrogen fuel cell (RHFC). The electrical service demand was derived using real usage data from a rural island case study location. Cost remuneration was managed with an REC virtual trading layer, ensuring fair distribution among actors in accordance with the European RED(III) policy. A multi-objective genetic algorithm (GA) stochastically determines the system capacities such that the inherent trade-off relationship between project cost and decarbonisation can be observed. The optimal design resulted in a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of 0.15 EUR/kWh, reducing costs by over 50% compared with typical EU grid power, with a project internal rate of return (IRR) of 10.8%, simple return of 9.6%/year, and return on investment (ROI) of 9 years. The emissions output from grid-only use was reduced by 72% to 69 gCO2e/kWh. Further research of lifetime economics and additional revenue streams in combination with this work could provide a useful tool for users to quickly design and prototype future decentralised REC systems.

Renewable Energy Community: an eco-social urban regeneration opportunity for PH districts

The paper presents the intermediate results of the design experimentation of a Public Housing development in which the Renewable Energy Community model is an opportunity for energy transition but also for the needs of social inclusion and collaboration, which characterise the complex conditions of contemporary housing. Demonstrating the transcalar and multifunctional effectiveness of RECs incentivises their implementation, especially when a complex demanding framework is confronted with limitedly available resources. Hence, through a systemic approach, simulative methods and impact indicators, the extent of the contribution offered by the REC model was verified not only in terms of decarbonisation and climate neutrality but as an opportunity for eco-social regeneration.

Energy communities and architectural quality of small historical centres

The text looks at Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) as a tool for implementing strategies that favour local energy transition, with particular focus on inland areas and small historical settlements. These “sensitive” contexts, often situated in landscapes or historical-cultural areas of significant value, require policies to convert to green energy and energy self-sufficiency that evaluate the need for specific actions tied to environmental protection objectives. The study reveals the role RECs can play in urban and landscape regeneration processes in these territories, under the condition that we adopt a holistic and multidisciplinary approach to design, oriented toward reimagining these sites with a view toward relaunching and promoting them.

Cultural Heritage and Energy Communities: critical issues and opportunities

The proposed decree of the Ministry for the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) encourages spreading self-consumption forms of energy from renewable sources, including Renewable Energy Communities (RECs). The paper proposes a mapping of the CERs already active in Italy, considerations on the main barriers that, at a national and international level, have hindered their diffusion, dwelling on the problems of compatibility in safeguarded and protected areas. Recalling projects and guidelines for installing photovoltaics in sensitive contexts, a first approach for a new CER in a UNESCO site is proposed as an opportunity to directly involve the Ministry of Culture as an actor in the energy transition processes.

Can renewable energy communities enable a just energy transition? Exploring alignment between stakeholder motivations and needs and EU policy in Latvia, Norway, Portugal and Spain

As a response to societal polarisation and mobilisation against the clean energy transition and renewable energy projects, policy makers at EU level have put focus on renewable energy communities as an instrument to drive transition, due their ability to promote citizens' participation and control over decision-making in renewable energy at local level. Literature on public acceptance and legitimacy of renewable energy projects highlights issues related to who are recognised and included as stakeholders, (un)fair distribution of the costs and benefits related to projects and the decision-making procedures involved. Renewable energy communities bring potential positive aspects that drive public acceptance, including social ownership, community development and distribution of benefits to grassroot actors. We contribute to the literature on how energy justice is perceived and can be enacted through renewable energy communities. In this article we explore what challenges for energy justice can be identified for renewable energy communities from the perspective of potential and existing shareholders in Latvia, Norway, Portugal and Spain. We also briefly discuss how identified challenges are addressed in the recast Renewable Energy Directive (REDII).

Optimal Sizing of Renewable Energy Communities: A Multiple Swarms Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization Approach

Renewable energy communities have gained popularity as a means of reducing carbon emissions and enhancing energy independence. However, determining the optimal sizing for each production and storage unit within these communities poses challenges due to conflicting objectives, such as minimizing costs while maximizing energy production. To address this issue, this paper employs a Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization (MOPSO) algorithm with multiple swarms. This approach aims to foster a broader diversity of solutions while concurrently ensuring a good plurality of nondominant solutions that define a Pareto frontier. To evaluate the effectiveness and reliability of this approach, four case studies with different energy management strategies focused on real-world operations were evaluated, aiming to replicate the practical challenges encountered in actual renewable energy communities. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach in determining the optimal size of production and storage units within renewable energy communities, while simultaneously addressing multiple conflicting objectives, including economic viability and flexibility, specifically Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), Self-Consumption Ratio (SCR) and Self-Sufficiency Ratio (SSR). The findings also provide valuable insights that clarify which energy management strategies are most suitable for this type of community.

Neural-assisted HVACs optimal scheduling for renewable energy communities

Renewable energy communities (RECs) show a high potential for the efficient use of distributed energy technologies at local levels according to the Clean Energy Package of the European Union. Nevertheless, many problems are encountered during the planning phase of a REC because a large number of decision variables should be considered depending on the types of community participants and their load profiles. Moreover, the load schedule is fundamental with the aim of maximizing the energy shared within the community and the economic revenue of the REC. This is the main objective of this work that deals with the problem of optimal scheduling for electrical heating and cooling systems in a university lecture building included in a renewable energy community. The conditioning systems are significant electrical loads that can be scheduled both to reduce the energy requirements of the buildings and to synchronize energy injection and withdrawal from the grid, achieving energy self-consumption. The energy demand for the building is estimated using a specific simulation environment (EnergyPlus) which is experimentally validated with a campaign of measurements. From this software, a training dataset is created and used to implement a computationally lean neural network to represent through a black-box model the thermal-electrical behavior of the lecture building. Through the use of this neural model, the building thermal set points are processed by an optimization algorithm to maximize the economic revenue of the REC, while retaining the comfort boundaries of the building. The innovative proposed strategy is applied on a yearly simulation of the REC resulting in reduced energy required for thermal conditioning, higher cash-flows associated with the energy market and a smaller carbon footprint of the community.

The flexibility of virtual energy storage based on the thermal inertia of buildings in renewable energy communities: A techno-economic analysis and comparison with the electric battery solution

The Renewable Energy Community (REC) concept has been introduced into the European decarbonization guidelines to promote the utilization of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and to incentivize their self-consumption at the local level. This paper analyzes the flexible use of Heat Pumps (HP) for building heating in an REC context. The Power-to-Heat (P2H) energy conversion process of HP allows the flexibility of the thermal sector to be exploited within the electricity sector: in this way, it is possible to store energy in the form of heat inside the building mass and then use the stored energy to reduce the building heating demand in the hours following the accumulation of energy. This energy storage solution has been defined as building-based Virtual Energy Storage (VES). The flexibility enabled by VES has been used to optimize the self-consumption of an REC. The flexible VES solution was evaluated, from a technical and economic point of view, through a sensitivity analysis on the variation of the RES penetration, and the results were compared with those based on a more traditional centralized electric battery (EB) storage system. The results demonstrated that the VES solution is less flexible than electric batteries. Nevertheless, both flexible solutions (VES and EB) can significantly increase the REC self-consumption: the self-consumed energy increased by between 6% and 44% thanks to the exploitation of the VES flexibility, while the EB flexibility enabled an increase in the self-consumed energy of 19% to 63% according to the scenario analyzed. However, due to the high investment cost of EB, the VES configuration resulted to be the best solution from an economic point of view.

Blockchain in the Energy Sector for SDG Achievement

Blockchain technology finds application in multiple sectors, including renewable energy. Numerous blockchain-based applications aim to provide support in the production, management, distribution, and consumption of green energy. The benefits offered are not only technological but also social, environmental, and economic. The purpose of this study is to examine how the application of blockchain in the energy industry may affect the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This study is composed of two parts. The first part concerns the identification and analysis of the most relevant categories of blockchain applications in the energy sector and their ability to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs. A knowledge base, comprising scientific articles, gray literature, and real-world applications, has been created and analyzed. With a keyword-based approach, each application was associated with one or more SDGs. In the second part, the Sustainability Awareness Framework (SuSAF) was used to examine the findings of the first part of the study and discuss them in terms of five dimensions of sustainability. Finally, potential risks associated with the use of blockchain in the energy sector are also covered. Results reveal that tracking energy production and consumption and renewable energy communities are the applications that have the most beneficial effects, and that the benefits linked to blockchain adoption go beyond the energy sector to include the environment, the economy, industry, infrastructure, smart cities, and society.

On a new method to design solar photovoltaic systems in renewable energy communities: The case of Culatra Island (Ria Formosa, Portugal)

Islands must reach sustainable lifestyles by improving resources management and by getting accustomed to renewable energy sources. Culatra, a small Portuguese island, is actively increasing renewable energy penetration into local processes in order to be the first 100% sustainable Portuguese territory by 2030. Based on the electric consumption of Culatra, the objective of the present study is to project a photovoltaic unit composed of several sub-fields, each with a distinct orientation, in order to increase the self-consumption ratio while at the same time reducing the surplus of energy production, assessed by the self-sufficiency ratio criteria, resulting in a lower levelised cost of energy of the power system. To achieve this, MATLAB’s implementation of a genetic algorithm was used to find the optimised set of orientations for a given load profile. The results indicate that it is possible to optimise the photovoltaic plant to reach a more continuous electricity generation through daytime, reducing the storage needs and increasing the value of photovoltaic systems. The method can be extended to other locations or demand curves, assisting on comparing different energy management strategies, and their respective advantages and disadvantages.