Community Energy Watch | Institutional Framework

ENERGY COMMUNITY UNDER LAW NO. 4513/2018

An EnCom is required to engage in at least one of the following activities:

• production, storage, own consumption or sale of electricity or thermal or cooling energy from RES or CHP plants or Hybrid Plants installed within the Region where the seat of the Community is established -or within an adjacent Region, for EnComs seated within the Region of Attica;
• management, such as collection, transport, treatment, storage or disposal of raw materials for the production of electricity or thermal or cooling energy from biomass or bioliquids or biogas or through the energy recovery of the biodegradable fraction of municipal waste;
• supplying its members with energy products, appliances and installations aimed at improving energy efficiency and at reducing energy consumption and the use of conventional fuels;
• supplying its members with electric vehicles, whether hybrid or non-hybrid, and alternative-fuel vehicles in general;
• distribution of electricity within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• supplying electricity or fossil gas to final customers within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• production, distribution and supply of thermal or cooling energy within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• demand management to reduce electricity end-use and representation of producers and consumers on the electricity market;
• network development, management and operation of alternative fuel infrastructure or management of sustainable transport means within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• installation and operation of water desalination plants using RES within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• provision of energy services.

An EnCom may carry out one of the following activities:

• raising capital in order to invest in the development of RES or CHP or to implement energy efficiency improvement measures within the Region where the EnCom is seated;
• drawing up studies for the development of RES or CHP or the implementation of energy efficiency improvement measures or providing relevant technical support to its members;
• managing or participating in projects financed by national or European Union funds and related to its objectives;
• advising on management or participation of its members in programs financed by national or European Union resources and related to its objectives;
• providing information and education, as well as raising awareness on energy sustainability issues at local and regional level;
• carrying out actions to support vulnerable consumers and address the energy poverty of citizens living below the poverty line within the region where the EnCom is seated -whether or not they are members of the EnCom- such as net-metering, supplying energy to these individuals and performing residential energy upgrades or other actions to reduce energy consumption in their homes.

RENEWABLE ENERGY COMMUNITY (REC)

Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) operate within one region and carry out at least one of the following activities: production, consumption, storage and sale of energy from renewable sources.

In the context of its activity, each REC:

(a) may share -within the Community- energy from Renewable Energy Sources that has been produced and stored, respectively, in REC-owned production and storage plants;

(b) has access to all energy markets, both directly and through cumulative representation, in a non-discriminatory manner.

In addition, RECs may engage in the following:

• implementation of virtual net-metering through RES and RES plants with storage owned by the REC in order to meet the energy needs of their members or consumers living below the poverty line;
• management, such as collection, transport, treatment, storage or disposal of raw materials for the production of electricity or thermal or cooling energy from biomass or bioliquids or biomethane or through the energy recovery of the biodegradable fraction of municipal waste;
• installation and operation of water desalination plants using RES;
• raising capital in order to invest in the development of RES or CHP or to implement energy efficiency improvement measures;
• drawing up studies for the development of RES or providing relevant technical support;
• management or participation in projects financed by national or European Union resources;
• advising on the management or participation of its members in programs financed by national or European Union resources and related to its objectives;
• providing information and education, as well as raising awareness on energy sustainability issues at local and regional level;
• support vulnerable consumers and address the energy poverty of citizens living below the poverty line within the region where the EnCom is seated -whether or not they are members of the EnCom- such as net-metering, supplying energy to these individuals and performing residential energy upgrades or other actions to reduce energy consumption in their homes;
• network development, management and operation of alternative fuel infrastructure or management of sustainable transport means, provision of energy services;
• forming cumulative representation bodies;
• activities to promote electromobility, including the operation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure;
• public benefit activities related to the sufficiency and supply of raw materials, energy, fuels and water.

CITIZEN ENERGY COMMUNITY (CEC)

Citizen Energy Communities (CECs) are active within one or more regions and are required to carry out at least one of the following activities: production, self-consumption or sale of electricity from renewable sources, storage, distribution and supply of electricity, cumulative representation, provision of flexibility and balancing, as well as provision of energy efficiency, electric vehicle charging and other energy services to its members.

A CEC may also carry out the following:

• manage or participate in projects financed by national or European Union to serve its objectives;
• advise on the management or participation of its members in programs financed by national or European Union funds or resources relevant to its objectives;
• provide information and education, as well as raise awareness on energy sustainability issues;
• actions to support vulnerable consumers and address the energy poverty of citizens living below the poverty line -whether or not they are members of the CEC- and particularly net-metering, supplying energy to these individuals and performing residential energy upgrades or other actions to reduce energy consumption in their homes.

CECs may additionally engage in all REC-specified activities and benefit from the financial incentives and support measures provided for RECs provided that the provisions on the proximity of members apply.

Energy Communities are launched so as to empower citizens’ participation in the energy transition and to meet the energy needs of their members through the use of RES. This is achieved by employing the tool of virtual net-metering. To date, photovoltaic systems constitute the most popular technology for meeting own energy needs.

• Virtual Net-Metering:

This refers to off-setting the electricity produced by a self-consumer’s RES plants with the electricity consumed in the self-consumer’s installations, provided that at least one of the latter is either not located in the same or adjacent area as the plants or operates using a different power supply. The production plants are located in any region irrespective of the location of the self-consumer’s installations, with exceptions applying in the cases of CECs, RECs or EnComs under Law no. 4513/2018.

• Virtual net-metering for RECs, CECs or Energy Communities under Law no. 4513/2018:

This refers to the offsetting of the electricity produced by RES or CHP plants of CECs, RECs or EnComs under Law no. 4513/2018 with the electricity consumed in installations of the aforementioned Communities’ members; consumers living below the poverty line; and households affected by energy poverty. In order to apply virtual net-metering (and subject to the regulations with regard to the proximity of members), these Energy Communities may install production plants in any Region, regardless of where the consumption installation or the seat of the community is located, and the latter are not all required to be in the same Region.

Especially in cases where fifty percent (50%) plus one of the members have proximity to the region of Attica, the production plant may be located in an adjacent region of Attica.

From 1 November 2023, no new requests may be submitted to the Operator for self-consumption projects with the application of virtual net metering by Energy Communities under Law 4513/2018.

Requests for self-consuming projects with the application of net metering and virtual net metering submitted to the Operator from 1 July 2023 are regulated by the new provisions (March 2023).

• In particular, the installation of RES plants and storage systems to meet own needs by applying virtual net-metering is allowed for:

(a) local and regional authorities;

(b) those registered in the Register of Farmers and Agricultural Holdings for installations of agricultural holdings and agricultural uses;

(c) Renewable Energy Communities, Citizen Energy Communities and Energy Communities under Law no. 4513/2018, so as to meet the energy needs of members who are exclusively domestic consumers or farmers registered in the Register of Farmers and Agricultural Holdings, the energy needs of citizens living below the poverty line and households affected by energy poverty, as well as to meet  the energy needs of local and regional authorities.

• To implement virtual net-metering, production plants may be connected to the grid either at High, Medium or Low Voltage.
• For CECs, RECs, as well as Energy Communities under Law No. 4513/2018 to implement virtual net-metering, the supply of production plants and any corresponding consumption supply to be offset may be connected to different power suppliers.

In order to connect RES projects to the grid, Energy Communities are required to obtain a license from the Network Operator (HEDNO) and the System Operator (IPTO), depending on the category of the project. The licensing process follows a priority system for granting Final Connection Offers to RES plants and storage plants by the respective Operator; this system is determined by a Ministerial Decision of the Minister of Environment and Energy. Ministerial Decision ΥΠΕΝ/ΓΔΕ/84014/7123 (Government Gazette 4333/B/12.08.2022) is currently in force.

Based on this decision, Energy Community self-production (net-metering) RES projects are classified in HEDNO’s Priority Group B, while all other EnCom RES projects (commercial projects) fall under Priority Group C.

The virtual net-metering implementation procedure is presented in the Guide of the Hellenic Association of Photovoltaic Companies (HELAPCO) published in April 2022.

Similar guidelines have been published by the HEDNO in 2019.

• Self-consumer with time-based virtual net-metering:

This refers to a self-consumer whose consumption facilities are not located on the same site as the RES and/or CHP production plant and the electricity generated and introduced into the Grid or the System is synchronously offset by the corresponding energy absorbed by the Grid or the System and consumed at its facilities. Production plants shall be installed in any region irrespective of the location of the consumption’s facilities. In particular, with regard to RECs, CECs or Energy Communities under Law 4513/2018 (and subject to the regulations with regard to members’ proximity), production plants may be installed in any Region, regardless of where the consumption installation or the seat of the community is located, and the latter are not all required to be in the same Region.

Especially in cases where fifty percent (50%) plus one of the members have proximity to the region of Attica, the production plant may be located in an adjacent region of Attica.

• Guaranteed prices outside competitive procedures

Energy Communities have the opportunity to participate in the RES market with guaranteed prices and without entering competitive procedures, exclusively with 2 PV projects of up to 500 kW each and until 30 September 2024. This deadline does not apply to Energy Communities that include local and regional authorities as members or to those that have more than 60 members, of which at least fifty (50) are natural persons. These categories of EnComs can enter into feed-in-tariff contracts without prior participation in competitive procedures up until 31/12/2023.

As of 1 January 2025, Energy Community RES projects will have to participate in competitive procedures in order to enter the RES market.

Energy Communities in the lignite region of Western Macedonia can enter into feed-in-tariff contracts for photovoltaic plants until 01 October 2024.

• Connection Priority

In order to connect RES projects to the grid, Energy Communities are required to obtain a license from the Network Operator (HEDNO) and the System Operator (IPTO), depending on the category of the project. The licensing process follows a priority system for granting Final Connection Offers to RES plants and storage plants by the respective Operator; this system is determined by a Ministerial Decision of the Minister of Environment and Energy.

Ministerial Decision ΥΠΕΝ/ΓΔΕ/84014/7123 (Government Gazette 4333/B/12.08.2022) is currently in force.

Based on this decision, Energy Community self-production (net-metering) RES projects are classified in HEDNO’s Priority Group B, while all other EnCom projects in low-medium voltage fall under HEDNO’s Priority Group C.

With regard to the priority framework of the IPTO, Energy Community projects are classified into Group C, which is divided into subgroups including, inter alia, the exempted plants exclusively of EnComs with the participation of local and regional authorities,  exempted plants to be installed exclusively within the Regional Units of Kozani and Florina, and wind power plants that have been exempted or have a production license or a Producer’s Certificate for a maximum capacity of up to 6 MW; for wind power plants, IPTO shall grant connection offers with a maximum capacity limit of 90 MW of maximum production capacity, with a maximum limit of 6 MW per EnCom.

• Transfers of administrative licenses

The transfer of Production Licenses, Production Certificates or Special Project Certificates and other licenses and authorizations of power plants belonging to a Citizens’ Energy Community (CEC) is not permitted.