Through “renewable energy communities”, citizens, communities and companies can join together regionally and generate, consume and store energy together: In the Innviertel, a great interest in energy communities is noticeable, not least because of the sharp rise in electricity prices, but the organizational effort involved in founding an energy community and the ongoing billing costs are often a hindrance. A solution is now to be found for the region.
With financial support from Leader, a non-profit processing platform for energy communities is being developed – the organization, administration and billing of energy communities should be transparent with it. In principle, energy communities offer advantages, such as electricity costs that can be planned in the long term and lower grid fees: “exchange” self-produced electricity with the neighbors in the network instead of buying it externally.
In the past, for example, a photovoltaic system could only supply solar power to the house on which the system was located. The excess was stored or fed into the grid.
Since the end of 2021 there has been the possibility of founding energy communities. This allows you to supply others with regionally produced, renewable energy. Behind the planned Leader project for the region is the non-profit “Association for the Promotion of Renewable Energy Communities” based in Waizenkirchen. “For energy communities that are not profit-oriented and oriented towards the common good, it is difficult to pay external service providers for processing and billing. A freely accessible digital solution is therefore indispensable,” says association chairman Harald Geissler.
If the initiators have their way, test operations will begin in the fall. A basic version should be available in early 2023. In addition, free training courses are planned in which the use of the software will be explained. The goal is for more energy communities to emerge.
The project on the renewable energy communities is supported, among others, by the leader region “Mitten im Innviertel” and the climate and energy model regions of Inn-Hausruck and Inn-Kobernausserwald.
Source: Nachrichten
