Community Energy Federation of Ireland

Advocating for supports and removal of barriers to community energy in Ireland

Community Energy – Definitions and Values

Existing definitions of energy communities

We note that 

Article 2(16) Recast Renewable Energy Directive‘Renewable Energy Community’Article 2(11) Recast Electricity Directive‘Citizen Energy Community’
An entity:(a) which, in accordance with the applicable national law, is based on open and voluntary participation, is autonomous, and is effectively controlled by shareholders or members that are located in the proximity of the renewable energy projects that are owned and developed by that legal entity;(b) the shareholders or members of which are natural persons, SMEs or local authorities, including municipalities;(c) the primary purpose of which is to provide environmental, economic or social community benefits for its shareholders or members or for the local areas where it operates, rather than financial profits. An entity that:(a) is based on voluntary and open participation and is effectively controlled by members or shareholders that are natural persons, local authorities, including municipalities, or small enterprises;(b) has for its primary purpose to provide environmental, economic or social community benefits to its members or shareholders or to the local areas where it operates rather than to generate financial profits; and(c) may engage in generation, including from renewable sources, distribution, supply, consumption, aggregation, energy storage, energy efficiency services or charging services for electric vehicles or provide other energy services to its members or shareholder

Shared values

Building on these concepts we have developed our shared values as below.  These will be the shared values of our advocacy and of the projects and organisations we are advocating for:

  • Ensure ongoing local ownership and ensuring that control and decision making are in the hands of people who live locally such as individuals, households and small local businesses.  “Community energy entities are effectively controlled by shareholders or members that are located in the proximity of the renewable energy projects that are owned and developed by that legal entity; which may include natural persons, local authorities, including municipalities, or small enterprises;”
    • Exception: the community energy movement includes “community energy service provider” entities which may be national or international, which provide services to local community energy organisations or projects.  Examples include registered non-profit electricity suppliers which work with community energy groups.  To fall under our definition of the community energy movement, such entities should be established in line with and adhere to the not-for-profit, environmental, inclusivity, equity and democratic principles below, however they may have a broader focus than one locality, and may provide services to or support multiple community energy groups and projects across a wider geography.
  • Have democratic governance principles such as one member one vote, with one member being defined as one individual or one household or one business with a grid connection.
  • Are open to membership to all people locally.  “Based on open and voluntary participation.”  Are inclusive and diverse, including supporting and actively encouraging participation by all genders, participation by different ethnic groups and travellers, and participation of young people.
  • Support equity and address energy poverty, including facilitating membership of and participation by vulnerable, energy poor and lower-income households.  
  • Focus on fossil fuel free projects only, which aim to free communities from fossil fuels.  Generation projects should be renewable energy generation only.
  • Conscious of broader impacts of energy projects– source equipment and inputs with attention to human rights, conflict minerals, the environmental impact of extraction, and the environmental impact of any ongoing fuels.  Support circularity as much as possible.  Respect for nature and biodiversity.
  • Have, as their overarching objective, not profit maximisation for shareholders, but rather social and environmental objectives – to facilitate the participation of members and the wider community in a just energy transition, to remove fossil fuels from energy, to protect the environment and to ensure the benefits of the energy transition are local and equitable.  Constitutions of such groups will provide that any profits are reinvested for the benefit of the wider community, the just energy transition and addressing energy poverty.  Groups and projects should fit definitions of “social enterprise”.  “The primary purpose is to provide environmental or social community benefits for the local areas where it operates, rather than financial profits.”

Engagement with other sectors

  • Relationship with private-for-profit sector: Community energy groups may leverage external financing from, source technical assistance from, and sub-contract work to the private-for-profit sector.  However, the advocacy campaign will support and advocate for this to be done in a way which does not allow for take-over or control of community energy assets or infrastructure by the private for-profit sector. To meet our definition of a community energy project, any private for-profit businesses who hold shares in or are members of a community project must be small local businesses and have one vote just as a household or individual would have.  Financing from non-community-based for-profit entities should be on the basis of loans and non-voting equity rather than voting-equity, so that the control of the project remains in community hands in the long term.  The advocacy campaign will advocate to ensure that the essential nature of the community energy sector is protected, that the for-profit sector is not able to use energy communities to capture the targeted supports available to community energy, and that community energy projects are not locked-in to particular private for-profit sector companies for any products or services, and are free to switch to other companies should service become unsatisfactory.  In other words, control should remain in the hands of entities which are set up in line with the principles and values above.
  • Relationship with the public sector: Local authorities may join or form part of community energy projects or groups.  The central government may provide supports to and services to community energy projects.  The advocacy campaign will campaign for a conducive policy environment for community energy in Ireland, including being critical of existing policy and regulation when appropriate, and supporting policy and regulation in line with the objectives.

While our campaign has a mailing list and communications which are open to the for-profit sector, and to anyone with any views on the above matters, the advocacy the campaign does, and the groups on whose behalf we campaign, should reflect the shared values above.  

This campaign does not be advocating against green energy projects which are owned by the private-for-profit sector and which may include partial community ownership, community involvement or community benefits aspects, however we do not specifically advocate for them either.  This campaign advocates for special supports which are exclusive to 100% community owned projects, and these projects are the primary focus of our advocacy.   We would call for such targeted supports for 100% community owned energy projects to be in addition to general supports the Government makes available to green energy projects generally. 

The advocacy campaign may also interact with interested individuals who may not be part of any existing community energy group, so long as they share the vision and values above.