Designing successful energy communities: A comparison of seven pilots in Europe applying the Multi-Actor Multi-Criteria Analysis

Lode, Maria Luisa; Heuninckx, Shary; Boveldt, Geert te; Macharis, Cathy; Coosemans, Thierry

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2022.102671

Cited by 23 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…They introduced an integrated methodology based on a linear bottom-up optimization model for addressing key aspects for planning an energy community, namely the definition of the best technology mix, demand-side management (DSM) and benefits' allocation through the novel fairness index. Similarly to Lode et al [11], Casalicchio et al [20] also highlight that the most decisive EC-planning factors are emissions' reduction, grid stability (in terms of DSM) and cost reduction; but additionally, the community composition and the fairness of the business models under which the EC would operate. Another important parameter is to determine the REC sharing scheme, either the physical or the "virtual" one.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…This technical analysis activity actually precedes the participatory processes required in the design stage of successful energy communities in order to provide enough information to participants and facilitate their decisions. In the context of participatory decision-making, Lode et al [11] applied the multi-actor, multi-criteria analysis (MAMCA) in the design phase of energy communities (ECs) for seven case studies in Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and Greece. They found that the factors considered as the most decisive ones for planning a successful EC are emission reduction, community building, energy cost reduction and grid stability.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…in which: c k,i stands for the absolute value of the criterion k in the scenario i; c k,max stands for the maximum absolute value of criterion k among all n scenarios. With respect to previous studies [11,20,28], specifically for PV plant planning, RES energy production or consumed RES energy and project efficiency are among the dominant criteria adopted in the multi-criteria assessment scheme.…”

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confidence: 99%

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A Practical Methodology for Building a Municipality-Led Renewable Energy Community: A Photovoltaics-Based Case Study for the Municipality of Hersonissos in Crete, Greece

Efthymiou¹,

Yfanti²,

Kyriakarakos

et al. 2022

Sustainability

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This paper presents a practical methodology to facilitate decision-making for the development of a renewable energy community (REC) in the municipality of Hersonissos in Crete, Greece. The impact of energy sharing produced from renewables through direct or indirect citizen participation presents an enormous opportunity to strengthen energy democracy and to alleviate energy poverty. Triggered by the latter being amongst the most essential goals for implementing policies towards low-carbon economies at the local level, the current study presents a step-by-step methodology to facilitate decision-making for building a municipality-led REC. Initially, potential sites and alternative sittings of photovoltaic (PV) plants are explored for detecting the optimal installation with respect to technical and possible legislative restrictions. The best REC business model is then selected based on a SWOT analysis, complemented with a detailed techno-economic analysis of the foreseen investments. According to the design calculations, the optimal PV plants/business-model option that emerged may achieve impressive environmental and economic benefits, i.e., reducing the municipality’s annual electricity-induced CO2 emissions and electricity expenses by at least 68.40% and 594,461.54 €, respectively.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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A Practical Methodology for Building a Municipality-Led Renewable Energy Community: A Photovoltaics-Based Case Study for the Municipality of Hersonissos in Crete, Greece

Efthymiou¹,

Yfanti²,

Kyriakarakos

et al. 2022

Sustainability

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“…In its essence, both CEC and REC are open and voluntary and incorporate non-commercial, environmental and social benefits. Previous studies found that the most important aspects of joining CEC and REC were emission reduction, community building, energy cost reduction and grid stability [1]. The authors of [2], [3] have discussed the difference between CEC and REC in great detail, considering many concepts and overlap definitions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reliable Data Profiling for Energy Communities – Review of Open-Source Approaches

Kairisa

Mutule

2023

Latvian Journal of Physics and Technical Sciences

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Meeting the challenges of the energy sector relies on data – in particular sharing it internally and externally with a wide range of partners. Unfortunately, this valuable data often cannot be obtained from real objects due to location specifics or privacy concerns, although accurate, open-source data are a priority to provide researchers and energy experts with the information needed to accelerate the energy transition. In recent years, many studies have focused on the development of energy communities, using different methods to create data for case studies; however, these methods are often too broad and do not correlate with conditions in real locations. This work aims to identify the challenges associated with creating realistic datasets for energy community studies, as well as highlight the methods of defining input data, considering the factors that make energy community studies a very complex task, and discuss the flaws of commonly used methods.

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“…Therefore, this study applied a participatory Multi-Criteria Analysis (specifically the Multi-Actor Multi-Criteria Analysis (MAMCA) [14]) to incorporate both the technical performance, as well as the social preferences in the evaluation of different energy scenarios. Building on combined approaches in previous studies on energy communities in the European Union [15], [16], this study was embedded in larger engagement activities, including the conduction of surveys, interviews, and communal workshops. The quantitative and qualitative data generated through these activities and a mixed-integer linear program (MILP) model used for the energy system optimization were fed into MAMCA.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing renewable and socially accepted energy systems for astronomical telescopes: A move towards energy justice

Valenzuela-Venegas

Lode

Viole

et al. 2023

Preprint

Self Cite

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Remote astronomical telescopes without access to the national electricity grid rely mostly on fossil fuels. Climate change concerns and fuel price vulnerability drive the transition to renewable energy sources. Astronomical facilities are usually designed without considering the surrounding communities’ social and energy needs or using renewable energy sources to power them. This study proposes a socially accepted renewable energy system for a future telescope in the Atacama Desert, combining an energy system model with a participatory multi-criteria analysis. Our findings highlight that various stakeholders prioritize emission reduction, security of supply, and electricity costs. The results reveal that a renewable energy system supplying the telescope could also cover 66% of the nearby San Pedro de Atacama community’s energy needs without additional capacity. Replicating similar energy systems at nearby telescopes could reduce fossil fuel-based energy generation by over 30GWh annually, cutting emissions of the area by 17-23ktCO2eq, while contributing to energy justice.

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Designing successful energy communities: A comparison of seven pilots in Europe applying the Multi-Actor Multi-Criteria Analysis

Cited by 23 publications

References 36 publications

A Practical Methodology for Building a Municipality-Led Renewable Energy Community: A Photovoltaics-Based Case Study for the Municipality of Hersonissos in Crete, Greece

A Practical Methodology for Building a Municipality-Led Renewable Energy Community: A Photovoltaics-Based Case Study for the Municipality of Hersonissos in Crete, Greece

Reliable Data Profiling for Energy Communities – Review of Open-Source Approaches

Designing renewable and socially accepted energy systems for astronomical telescopes: A move towards energy justice

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