Over 170 renewable energy communities in Upper Austria

In 2021, the Austrian Parliament introduced a legal framework enabling the creation of Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) across the country. Recognizing the potential and complexity of this initiative, OÖ Energiesparverband (ESV) saw the need for strong support and identified its role as the regional energy agency to help drive this forward.

With extensive experience managing One-Stop Shops (OSS) for home renovations and energy performance contracting, along with numerous programs for citizens, municipalities, and SMEs, ESV was well-prepared to launch an OSS specifically for Energy Communities. This service was developed as part of the H2020 project UP-STAIRS.

The new OSS offers comprehensive assistance to municipalities, households, and SMEs in Upper Austria, covering technical, regulatory, financial, and organizational aspects of energy communities. ESV also successfully advocated for a small financial support program from the regional government to help prepare RECs with any legal or technical challenges, which was later adopted nationally.

Impact to date includes:

• Over 1,100 individual advice sessions provided to municipalities, households, and SMEs, through on-site visits, phone, and video consultations.
• 57 events reaching 3,200 participants, with 21 focused exclusively on Energy Communities through ESV-led workshops, conferences, and training sessions.
• By December 2023, Upper Austria had over 500 shared photovoltaic installations in large buildings, more than 170 RECs with 3,000+ members, and over 20 citizen energy communities.

With additional forms of energy sharing expected in future Austrian legislation, energy sharing is set to expand significantly in the coming years.

Source: Upper Austria Regional Energy Agency

www.energiesparverband.at

officeesv [dot] or [dot] at (office[at]esv[dot]or[dot]at)