Call for technical assistance under the Energy Communities Repository

What kind of support does the Repository offer?

Energy communities in the EU find themselves at very different stages in their development; some are informal groups that have just started thinking about the possibility of setting up an energy community, some are already established legal entities that only need a last bit of expert support to get their clean energy project over the finish line.

With this in mind, the Energy Communities Repository will provide different forms of support to at least 150 energy communities overall, taking into consideration the different needs of applicants:

• Direct technical assistance
  • To at least 25 energy communities, in which experts provide days of expert support to the community.
• National capacity building
  • Workshops and webinars held in local language in the following countries: Bulgaria, Greece, Czech Republic, Croatia (extension towards Serbia / Montenegro / Albania / Bosnia & Herzegovina), Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, targeting at least 80 communities.
• Twinnings and peer-to-peer exchanges
  • On specific topics and issues faced by energy communities.

These activities will be complemented by EU-wide capacity-building webinars.

Who can receive technical support?

To apply for assistance Communities can be a legal entity, an informal community of actors, or a collective of actors. If a legal entity, the community must be a Citizen Energy Community or a Renewable Energy Community (or the national equivalent of these definitions). You can find more information about this in the application guidelines.

The Energy Communities Repository will provide technical assistance primarily for urban communities. Rural communities will be supported by the Rural Communities Energy Advisory Hub.

The definition of rural and urban for the purpose of the Energy Communities Repository is based on the Degree of Urbanisation (you will find more information on this in the application guidelines).

In order to make sure every applicant community is considered by the right initiative, the Repository and the Advisory Hub may exchange information about the applications received. The purpose of this is to make sure if for instance a rural energy community accidentally applied to the Repository, the community will be able to receive support by the Advisory Hub instead.

How do I apply?

The application process is designed to limit the work required by applicants when putting the application together while ensuring tailored support adapted to the energy communities’ needs. The below visual gives you an overview of the main steps and timelines to keep in mind:

Step 1: Pre-application

• Watch the recording of the technical assistance information webinar here
• The Repository will also organize 14 national information sessions in the focus countries between the end of June and November 2022. Details will be published on this website.

Step 2: Application & Submission

The application form is divided into 4 parts and should not take longer than 20 minutes to fill in.

1. Basic information and eligibility check: information on the energy community, and short questions to understand the governance, activities, and localization of the community.
2. Self-assessment questionnaire: a short survey to determine the community’s stage of development: Awareness, Development, Operation.
3. Support menu: depending on the development stage, a list of activities to help the development and upskilling of the energy community will be provided. Applicants can select and rank up to 3 items.
4. Project and energy community description: some open questions let the applicants explain in more details their project and the support needed. A letter of Intent signed by 3 members of the community will also be required as part of the application process.

Step 3: Evaluation

Eligible applications will be assessed, ranked and grouped using the Eligibility and Assessment Criteria (see guidance notes below). Evaluation will be conducted after each cut-off date and the applicant will receive feedback no later than 1 month after.

Based on the information provided by the applicants, the consortium will pre-select the most suitable technical assistance activity for each applicant, and group applicants by needs and country for the capacity building workshops.

The deadline to submit your application to the second call is 31 October. Hurry up!