Introduction (14/03/2024)

Welcome to the final newsletter of the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH).

Rural energy community best practices from across Europe (14/03/2024)

We’ve compiled a collection of reports showcasing rural energy community best practice examples from across Europe. The 20 best practices highlight the latest developments from these trailblazing rural energy communities.

Guidance documents on setting up and maintaining a rural energy community (14/03/2024)

During the RECAH project, our technical experts have produced a series of guidance documents, giving expert advice to those seeking to set up and run a rural energy community. The guidance documents cover a range of topics, including:

What to look out for in 2024.... (14/03/2024)

Citizen-led renovation project

The support service for Citizen-led renovation is an EU initiative aiming to empower energy communities to put citizens in the driver’s seat for energy-saving renovation projects.

Intro - Jan 24 (30/01/2024)

Welcome the February Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub Newsletter

Guidance now available to support farmers to find business and climate-positive paths by engaging with rural energy communities and actively contributing to clean energy production (30/01/2024)

RECAH recently published comprehensive guidance advocating for collaboration between farmers and public interest groups and outlining how they can make vital contributions to rural energy community ecosystems.

Strategies made available for municipalities to empower rural communities, promote energy independence, produce clean energy, alleviate fuel poverty and boost economies (30/01/2024)

RECAH has published new guidance for municipal governments and officials to support them in empowering communities, promoting energy independence, advancing clean energy production, alleviating fuel poverty, and boosting local economies through rural energy community development.

New reports published showcasing environmental, societal and economic benefits brought by citizens’ participation in the energy transition across Europe (30/01/2024)

RECAH has published three new reports examining exemplary rural energy communities in Sweden, two in The Netherlands, and a cooperative on Korcula Island, Croatia. These reports serve as inspiration and best practice examples of how clean energy initiatives can bring environmental, societal and economic benefits to local communities.

Report published supporting the realisation of cross-border energy communities across European rural areas (30/01/2024)

RECAH has published a report presenting and analysing findings from the cross-border energy community workshops they delivered in collaboration with DG Regio. The report provides insights on the drivers, barriers and funding opportunities for cross-border energy communities; it presents case studies of existing cross-border initiatives and projects, and maps relevant stakeholders across the European Union.

Enabling a consumer-centric market design: RECAH's Dublin finale and the future of sustainable energy communities (30/01/2024)

RECAH and the Energy Communities Repository (ECR) Joint Final Conference, held in Dublin in November 2023, served as a beacon of inspiration, showcasing the potential of collaborative efforts in shaping the future of sustainable energy communities.

Stakeholders involved in rural activities and energy community projects should join the RECAH member network to gain exposure at an EU level and access expert databases (30/01/2024)

RECAH is encouraging its audience of 1,000+ members of existing or prospective energy communities, local & regional authorities, farmers, policymakers, SMEs, citizens, NGOs, academics and technical experts to join its member network.

Intro - Oct 23 issue (25/10/2023)

Welcome to this month’s Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) newsletter.

Rural energy communities: Leading Europe's shift to sustainable self-sufficiency (25/10/2023)

In this article, Eugenia Bonifazi, RECAH Project Manager, elaborates on how rural energy communities are a unique mechanism providing the innovative energy solutions needed to shift towards decentralised renewable energy systems. She highlights the main challenges facing the communities and how the RECAH initiative aims to support them.

Join our final conference online! (31/10/2023)

We have reached our in-person capacity for the event and closed registration. We can now confirm online event streaming and invite you to register to receive the streaming link.

Assessing impact: RECAH's technical assistance delivery review (31/10/2023)

Find out how the RECAH team will assess the impact of the technical assistance delivered to 28 beneficiaries across Europe based on feedback received so far, and how they are working with the experts that delivered the support to reflect on their experience.

Guidance for rural energy communities is now available in French, Hungarian, and Romanian (25/10/2023)

Comprehensive guidance documents developed by RECAH have now been translated into French, Hungarian, and Romanian. This short article offers an overview of what readers can expect from the documents, reveals where you can access the translations, and presents insight from the initiative's communications team.

Upcoming guidance on how farmers can support sustainability, energy efficiency, and economic benefits within the context of rural energy communities (25/10/2023)

Guidance will be released highlighting the important role that farmers can play in rural energy communities. RECAH hopes to ensure their recognition among community stakeholders in this soon-to-be-published guidance document.

New reports highlight the successful efforts of rural energy communities in Italy, Germany and The Netherlands (25/10/2023)

There are now seven reports available showcasing best practice examples of energy communities in European rural areas. Find out which communities have been selected and why, what is covered in these reports, how to access them, and how to stay informed about future ones.

150 organisations registered to take part in RECAH Energy Breakfast Networking Sessions (25/10/2023)

This article offers insight into the recent networking series delivered by RECAH, which brought together energy communities, local authorities, members of the EU Commission, NGOs, and other key stakeholders in the energy transition. Find out what the sessions included, what topics were covered, and how to access the recordings.

Collaboration between RECAH and DG Regio brings energy community-focused workshops to regions across Europe (25/10/2023)

RECAH recently delivered a series of cross-border, in-country, and online workshops in collaboration with DG Regio to empower the development of sustainable energy community projects across Europe. Find out about the locations, aims, and outcomes of these workshops.

The European Week of Regions and Cities (25/10/2023)

RECAH’s Programme Manager, Eugenia Bonifazi tells us about the successful European Week of Regions and Cities that she attended. This article also provides details of the Green Advisory Service for Sustainable Investments Support (Green Assist), which could offer further technical support opportunities for rural energy communities.

Intro – July 2023 Issue (10/08/2023)

Welcome to this month’s issue of the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub Newsletter.

New guidance published on navigating technology types for rural energy communities (10/08/2023)

Brand new guidance exploring the different technology options available to rural energy communities has been published by RECAH. This article looks at the aims of the document, what information is provided and gives insight from the author.

Guidance for municipalities on supporting and developing rural energy communities will be available soon (10/08/2023)

This article explores the contents of one of RECAH’s upcoming guidance documents, which aims to be a comprehensive guide for local authorities on supporting and facilitating the development of sustainable energy communities in rural areas. We hear from the author and share how you can keep up to date on the document’s upcoming publication.

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub enhances one of the most well-attended EU Sustainable Energy Week sessions (10/08/2023)

Eugenia Bonifazi, Project Manager of the RECAH, was invited to speak at an EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) session exploring capacity building for social innovation within the context of energy communities. Get an overview of this year’s most important themes and find out what Eugenia's session covered.

KLIK wins the European Sustainable Energy Award 2023 in the Local Energy Action category (10/08/2023)

KLIK, a cooperative of citizens in Križevci, Croatia that has been receiving technical assistance from the RECAH, received the Local Energy Action EUSEW Award 2023.

Rural energy community guidance documents are now available in Bulgarian, Italian, and Polish (10/08/2023)

The RECAH is translating its series of guidance documents into six European languages: Bulgarian, French, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, and Romanian. Find out which documents have already been translated and how to access them in this article.

Take part in this data collection survey and advance energy communities’ activities in Europe (10/08/2023)

If you want to boost energy community projects in Europe, take part in this data collection survey by the Energy Communities Repository.

Save the date – Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub and Energy Communities Repository joint final conference (14/08/2023)

The European Commission’s RECAH and Energy Communities Repository (ECR) have announced their joint final conference.

Energy Breakfast Series - Wednesday mornings at 9 AM CET. (14/08/2023)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) Energy Breakfast Series networking sessions are open to our RECAH member network and will take place on Wednesday mornings at 9 AM CET. Sessions welcome a presentation from thriving energy communities (ECs) across Europe and an opportunity to network, share knowledge and ask questions.

Welcome to the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub's newsletter (29/03/2023)

Welcome to the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub's newsletter

Guidance published on national legal and policy frameworks for energy communities (29/03/2023)

The new guidance published by the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) investigates the policy scenario supporting the development of rural energy projects in each EU Member State. This short article provides details of what is included, insight from the lead author and access to all four RECAH guidance documents.

Further examples of best practices now available for rural energy communities (29/03/2023)

Two additional reports have been published, adding to a collection that showcases rural energy community best practice examples from across Europe.

Rural energy communities across Europe have applied for technical assistance (29/03/2023)

Eligible applications for technical assistance from the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) have been received from 47 rural energy communities across Europe. Of these, 25 communities have now been selected to receive technical assistance.

Launch of the EU Energy Communities Map (29/03/2023)

The European Commission's Energy Communities Repository has launched an interactive map of energy communities in Europe. Based on an inventory created by the EU-funded COMETS project, this map provides an overview of Europe’s energy communities and specific data, such as the type of energy community, the number of members, their energy production, etc.

LIFE Programme: €380 million for 168 new green projects all around Europe (29/03/2023)

The European Commission has approved €380 million for 168 new green projects across Europe under the LIFE Programme. Funding will be mobilised for projects that support the clean energy transition, nature and biodiversity, circular economy and quality of life, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.

The Smart Rural 27 project launches its first knowledge cluster on renewable energy (29/03/2023)

The first Smart Rural 27 ‘Knowledge Cluster’, a key platform to enable peer-to-peer learning on ‘Local Energy Transition and Renewable Energy Communities’, will be formed by 33 rural communities.

Providing support to rural energy communities in Italy (29/03/2023)

We learn about the landscape of energy communities in Italy from Ruralis, a dynamic start-up dedicated to supporting economic development in Italy's rural areas. This case study explores challenges for energy communities and the role of Ruralis in creating a Green Community initiative in the Avellino province.

Spain's renewable energy communities - status, successes, and support (29/03/2023)

There is great potential for the deployment of renewable energy technologies in Spain. This case study explores the status of renewable energy communities (RECs) across Spain and the success of a rural energy community and a non-profit organisation in supporting renewable energy projects in the autonomous regions.

What is an Energy Community? (17/10/2022)

We aim to empower the development of sustainable energy community projects in European rural areas (25/10/2022)

Contact us (18/10/2022)

Welcome to the second issue of the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub newsletter (26/09/2022)

Welcome to the second issue of the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub newsletter

Call for experts: the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub technical assistance programme (12/10/2022)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) is seeking experts to support the provision of technical assistance to energy communities in Europe’s rural areas. The call for experts will remain open until 31 December 2022.

Stakeholders convene in Poland for the launch of technical assistance programme (12/10/2022)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) had its second event, to launch its technical assistance programme, in Kielce, Poland. The event took place on the 12th of September 2022 and was well attended in person and online by key stakeholders in the rural energy transition.

Best practice case studies published by the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (12/10/2022)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) has published two best practice case studies. These aim to showcase the successful efforts of rural communities and provide inspiration and concrete guidance for prospective new or expanding rural energy communities.

Guidance now available for new, prospective or existing rural energy communities (17/10/2022)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) is publishing a series of guidance documents, aiming to accelerate the renewable energy transition in rural areas.

The landscape of Energy Cooperatives in Germany (17/10/2022)

We take a look at the landscape of energy cooperatives in Germany and Mr Benjamin Dannemann from the German National Office for Energy Cooperatives shares some interesting statistics and case studies of successful energy communities.

EnGreen – Building a rural energy community from the ground up (17/10/2022)

EnGreen rural energy community (REC) is in its early stages, created only in December 2021. Mr Carlo Tacconelli, one of the project founders, tells us about setting up a REC, what the benefits and barriers are and what his advice for new or prospective RECs would be.

Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub - Technical Assistance Q&A webinar (21/10/2022)

The Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) is hosting a webinar on Wednesday, 16 November (15:00h-16:00h CET), about the ongoing call for applications for technical assistance to rural energy communities across Europe.

European Sustainable Energy Week 2022 (17/10/2022)

Achille Hannoset, project lead of the Rural Energy Community Advisory Hub (RECAH) and Eugenia Bonifazi, RECAH Project Manager, were invited to speak about energy communities at the European Sustainable Energy Week 2022 conference on the 29th September 2022.