Citizen energy communities are the brightest spot of our reality, because of the benefits and social cohesion they bring to local communities beyond produced energy itself. They are one of the key tools through which citizens are directly activated in the energy transition, thereby strengthening the security of energy supply, local resilience, and local economic and industrial development. In times of crisis, it is particularly important to re-arm with good energy.
These were the key messages of the Good Energy Conference, the third in a row, held on 23 October and organised by Green Energy Cooperative (ZEZ) with the support of partners — the Institute for Political Ecology (IPE), Terra Hub and Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) in Zagreb.
Citizens at the Heart of the Transition – Not a New Concept
Europe recognised the importance of citizen energy as early as 2015 in the European Commission Communication on a Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union, where citizens stopped being viewed solely as consumers, and were placed at the centre of the energy transition as active participants in market changes. In this way, citizens directly benefit from new technologies, increase the security of their energy supply, reduce their bills, and ensure that vulnerable groups are protected.
Europe will not abandon green policies despite current challenges related to industrial competitiveness or geopolitics. The European continent is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, 47 million citizens live in energy poverty, and on the other hand, we already have more than 10,500 energy communities — two thousand more than last year when we also gathered at Good Energy Conference – emphasised Judita Cuculić Župa from the Representation of the European Commission in Croatia.
Josh Roberts, lawyer and public policy advisor at the European Federation of Energy Communities (REScoop.eu), highlighted the expectations of the Federation’s members regarding the forthcoming EU Citizens’ Energy Package, of which we will share more details in an upcoming article.
From Slovenia to the Southern Edge of the Region, a Clear Vision for Energy Communities
How this works in practice across Southeast Europe was discussed openly and directly — through presentations, panel discussions, and informal exchanges at a conference that brought together energy communities, projects and initiatives from the region. Experiences were shared — both the good and the challenging ones — from Sončna zadruga in Slovenia, Elektropionir and Magdon Energy Housing Community in Serbia, to pilot renewable energy community initiatives of public institutions from Kakanj, Modriča, and Mostar in B&H. Croatian energy communities also presented their work — Apsyrtides from Cres, SAVA, the Energy Community of the Northern Adriatic, Križevci cooperative KLIK, and ZEZ Sun.
Positive experiences of national-level support mechanisms, as well as models proving that it can be done, were also shared from Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Austria.
If the main actors of citizen energy in the region had a magic wand, their common vision for the future could be summarised in these five key points:
- Forming an energy community among residents in the same building or neighbourhood should be simple — possible online or via an app, within just a few clicks, as it already works in Austria.
- Sharing surplus energy among community members must be practically enabled, not just on paper, and should make economic sense. A centralised technical system for energy-sharing accounting has been successfully introduced in the Czech Republic.
- Public rooftops should be put to use with solar installations co-financed and shared by citizens, similar to the concept of public urban gardens — examples exist in Slovenia and Austria.
- For citizens at risk or living in energy poverty, a defined quota of shared/available energy should be provided by energy communities. A good example of this exists in Brixton, UK.
- Following Ireland’s example, energy communities i.e. small market actors should have a defined grid capacity quota to prevent them from being “swallowed” by large producers booking massive grid capacities.
It’s High Time the System Supported Citizens Who Want to Share Energy
Although they bring many positive benefits, in our region energy communities remain a bright spot that is idling instead of moving full speed ahead for the benefit of all citizens.
In Croatia, both citizens and entrepreneurs as market players are ready to share knowledge and experience and many are already actively involved in energy communities. The Croatian Energy Community Forum today brings together 17 initiatives with more than 250 members, while over 1,000 citizens have already expressed interest in energy sharing. All of this confirms a genuine potential and readiness for the growth of community solar markets.
However, as repeatedly emphasised during the conference, energy sharing among community members remains technically and practically blocked in Croatia.
The main bottleneck is HEP-ODS, the legally designated operator, which has been blocking the system since it has not yet technically enabled energy sharing, despite its legal obligation to do so for two years now.
The result is an erosion of trust among citizens who have formed energy communities in Croatia and are still waiting for the chance to share their surplus energy.
This is the situation faced by the Energy Community of the Northern Adriatic and the Community of Firefighters Association (DVD) Špičkovina.
On behalf of the Croatian Energy Community Forum, Damir Medved reminded HEP-ODS to urgently fulfil its legal obligation and finally enable simple, practical examples of energy sharing.
Good Energy Is the Energy That Is Good for Everyone
The conference concluded on a positive note: despite obstacles, there are many good practices and examples. It is essential to maintain open dialogue and tackle challenges together – all stakeholders must gather around the same table to consider all perspectives when working out the solutions. That is the true path to more good energy.
With this conference, ZEZ demonstrated its ability to bring together partners, knowledge and experience from across the region and the EU, especially from Slovenia, Austria, and Belgium, to Croatia, and reaffirmed its readiness to support institutions and stakeholders wishing to accelerate the development of energy communities in Croatia.
This is an open call to the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the national energy system operator for dialogue and cooperation, because good energy is simply good for everyone, concluded Goran Čačić on behalf of Green Energy Cooperative.
The financial support for the Conference has been provided by the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU), European Climate Foundation (ECF), and EU Life COMET Project.
This article was produced as part of activities under the LIFE COMET project.
The project is funded under grant no. 101120519 through the LIFE Programme, the EU’s funding instrument for environmental, nature conservation, and climate action initiatives, in the amount of €1,499,825, while the total project value amounts to €1,578,764.
The project runs from 1 November 2023 to 31 October 2026 and is co-financed by the Office for Cooperation with NGOs of the Government of the Republic of Croatia.
The views expressed in this text are solely the responsibility of Zelena energetska zadruga and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the Government Office for Cooperation with NGOs.
Photo credits: Bojan-Haron Markičević
