In focus: Energy communities to transform the EU’s energy system

In focus: Energy communities to transform the EU’s energy system

To tackle high energy prices and a rampant inflation, the European Commission and EU countries are actively promoting actions that help citizens reduce their energy consumption, increase their energy savings and lower their energy bills. 

Individual action can make an important difference for each household – by reducing their energy use or switching to renewable energy providers, as much as 83% of all EU households could contribute to renewable energy production, demand response and/or energy storage in 2050. 

But the collective dimension of citizen engagement can particularly contribute not only to a ‘smarter’ energy use, but also to increasing the EU’s renewable energy production. 

Beyond their traditional role of consumers, more and more citizens are becoming ‘energy prosumers’, who both consume and produce energy. Prosumers can be individuals, for instance, households that install solar panels on their roofs to use the power of the sun, or collectives, such as energy communities, which bring together citizens to take joint action to produce local, clean energy. These communities contribute to increasing social acceptance and investments linked to local energy projects, which benefit communities both at societal and economical level. (...)