CERTAIN Energy

Renewable Energy Communities (CERs) are one of the novelties of the near future of sustainable energies

It's a simple idea: collective photovoltaic plants can be created (which can also include plants from other renewable sources, but - to have incentives - they must be built after the entry into force of the law) and connect them to each other. The CERs are associations or cooperatives or consortia between citizens (e.g. families, condominiums), private companies (e.g. small, medium-sized enterprises, supermarkets above all and car parks), public administrations (municipalities and local authorities), associations. The association is a legal entity (but there are also other possibilities of private agreements), based on open and voluntary participation, controlled by shareholders or members located in the vicinity of the plants, held by the community. The maximum power limit of the plants is 1 MW. The systems mainly refer to the secondary substations of the electricity network, so as to allow the inhabitants of different buildings and different municipal areas to be gathered in the same CER.

The main objective is to produce energy from renewable sources, distribute it and consume it on site, through a functioning and efficient system. The systems respond to the need for self-consumption, for sharing excess energy; they are able to have accumulation and redistribution systems, communication with other production plants and are governed digitally.

The broader purpose is to provide environmental, economic and social benefits at the community level and to the local areas in which it operates; not to make profits. It is also possible to use areas on large roofs of companies, on public buildings, on condominiums or on the ground with authorizations that are now more streamlined than in the past.

These choices allow you to work on the bills of those who join.

How do they work in practice? In CERs, users operate under a dual regime: a connection to the traditional network via an individually chosen provider, and a connection to CERs. The energy exchanged is deducted from the bill. It is a legislative novelty coming from Europe (RED II directive on renewables of 2016) and recently arrived also in Italy (DLG 199/2021, with the implementing decrees being defined). There is an important sum (over 2.2 billion euros) allocated by the PNRR to start these experiences and with concessions that last 20 years for municipalities with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants.

Are there technicians and experts who assist and advise those who train the CERs? The answer is affirmative: there are various types of structures that deal with providing this type of service such as consultancy and installation contracts. Some polytechnics, such as the one in Turin with the Energy Center structure, can play the role of technicians and plant suppliers, creating territorial networks between various types of professional figures who, among other things, favor new job opportunities. The role of local authorities is fundamental: to serve and encourage the community that is active in this field, to reduce the costs of their offices, schools, sports facilities and share excess energy with the community.

Even if few - in December 2022 there were 17 CERs in Italy, while many others have started preliminary studies and related practices - the active experiences are decidedly positive. In Piedmont since 2018 there is a favorable legislation that can implement the plants.

Some local examples of yesterday and today? In Piedmont: Magliano Alpi, Carrù (CN), condominium communities in Pinerolo (TO). In Italy: San Daniele del Friuli and the hilly community of Friuli, Pilastro/Roveri in the province of Bologna, companies in various sectors in Imola, Torano Lodigiano in Lodi. In Ragusa and in Veneto we find CERs of farms. Also a social example: Legambiente in Naples has created a CER with the Fondazione Famiglia di Maria and 40 families from the Teduccio district. The installed power is 53 kWp with storage system, the annual energy produced is equal to 60 MWh per year. The overall benefits, to date, amount to 200/300 euros per year per family. Let's not delude ourselves, it is a first, complex step, to be helped and followed carefully.

Of course, this new opportunity requires certain conditions: the government and the regions must not row against it, lengthening and slowing down the implementation of projects; greater responsibility on the part of citizens, through the construction of a widespread mentality of participation and autonomy; a new entrepreneurial culture, capable of finally tackling the issues of consumption and related management costs; the technical and professional skills to be networked at the local level, supported by bureaucratic and technical efficiencies on the part of local authorities. A good challenge!

Carlo Degiacomi

NP Febbraio 2023