Community renewable energy: What does it do? Walker and Devine-Wright (2008) ten years on

Abstract

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Status and Evolution of the Community Energy Sector in Italy

“…As also experienced in other countries [12,17] the legal structure adopted varies, including limited companies, non-profit associations, and cooperatives, which account for about 60% of the sample (Table A1). Cooperatives are the legal form mostly used in the European CE sector [12,14,37,38] and are generally deemed to provide the best institutional framework for locally owned and participatory approaches to renewable energy projects.…”

“…As also experienced in other countries [12,17] the legal structure adopted varies, including limited companies, non-profit associations, and cooperatives, which account for about 60% of the sample (Table A1). Cooperatives are the legal form mostly used in the European CE sector [12,14,37,38] and are generally deemed to provide the best institutional framework for locally owned and participatory approaches to renewable energy projects. They encompass both the social and economic dimension in their scope and are characterized by a 'one head one vote' decision making process, with the aim to provide higher levels of co-determination [9,37,39,40].…”

“…While consumers' participation to energy transition is increasingly concerning the policy makers [8], community energy (CE) and shared ownership approaches for investments in the energy sector have been developing worldwide [9][10][11]. They enable citizens to collectively develop and manage energy projects or services, presenting a different model of development and ownership than traditional business organizations [12,13].…”

“…They have been later associated with renewable energy production with the rise of wind cooperatives in Denmark in the late 1970s and with new waves of citizens' initiatives after Chernobyl disaster in 1986 (in particular in Germany and Belgium). It is from the 2000s that they began emerging as new paradigms of people engagement in the energy transition toward renewable energy production, facilitated and driven by the last decade's energy system liberalization and transition toward more decentralized energy systems [12].…”

“…They are very specific and currently not replicable cases, functioning as a group of special legal status which in particular allow them to own and manage the local distribution network. Instead, this paper specifically looks at paradigms of citizens' financial and ownership involvement in energy initiatives which began appearing in Italy and the rest of Europe since the late 2000s [12,15]. They are mostly initiatives focused on development of renewable energy production facilities and, most of all, differentiate themselves from Italian historical cooperatives as they do not benefit from their special legal status and cannot own local distribution networks.…”