The acronym is CER, in full Renewable Energy Communities. Have you heard of it? They are associations of public bodies, citizens, commercial activities or SME companies that decide to equip themselves with systems for the production and sharing of clean energy as long as they are connected to the same primary electricity distribution substation. Objective: to provide economic, social and environmental benefits to members, in the territory in which they are located. The European Union protects and promotes the development of CER and Italy has prepared a dedicated regulatory framework in this regard, to which a series of benefits are linked.
Against energy poverty
CERs are encouraged as a fundamental tool for the transition to clean energy. The Communities are also associated with social benefits because the regulation allows the distribution, in the form of an economic bonus, of part of the incentives also to the consumer members who make their consumption “available”, in fact, each member uses the energy generated by the plant, during the hours in which it produces, gaining an advantage and reducing the bill. For this reason, the tool can be considered as a form of protection against energy poverty, for those citizens and families in difficulty who do not have the possibility of installing a system on their own.
Enel integrated enabler
In many Northern European countries, CERs are a widespread reality experiencing strong growth. And in Italy? The CER incentive is available starting from April 2024, and in November there were already over 450 requests for access to the service for widespread self-consumption, of which approximately half were already admitted, for a total power of 65 MW. In the’Electricity Market Reportthe Polytechnic of Milan estimates that there will soon be 1.2 million Italians connected in production and self-consumption communities.
In this context, Enel presents itself as an integrated enabler, offering services for the entire life cycle of the CER, from the initial stages up to its operation over time, helping businesses, public administrations and private citizens, with an offer of specifically designed services to meet the different needs of the communities. The Enel Group supports its customers in the construction and development of small-scale renewable plants (<1 MW), supports them in their inclusion within an Energy Community and provides solutions dedicated to CERs to also support the participation of consumers private individuals and small and medium-sized businesses. Public administrations interested in developing an Energy Community can also rely on Enel, with turnkey solutions, from the development to the construction of the plants, up to the support for inclusion in CER and for the population of consumption, essential to be able to accrue the incentive . Today Enel already supports 19 CER configurations, for a total of 22 MW of photovoltaic systems, here are some examples.
Remer configuration of San Benedetto del Tronto
The Remer company of San Benedetto del Tronto (Ascoli Piceno) now has a century of history, but has maintained the approach that has led it to be one of the most important Italian players in the steel rope production sector, combining tradition and innovation, all round. For this reason, the company decided to rely on Enel to build a photovoltaic system, which was subsequently included in a CER in the area.
A 1 MW rooftop system has been built, with 2,200 photovoltaic panels, which produces approximately 1,200 GWh per year, of which almost half is fed into the electricity distribution network. The CER opened membership for consumer members in July 2024, for an audience of approximately 400 consumers, including residential consumers and small and medium-sized businesses. A virtuous example, in which whoever built the system benefits from the CER incentive dedicated to him, as do the consumer members of the community who obtain their CER benefit directly on their bill.
Conad Smart Space Casamarciano
In Casamarciano, in the province of Naples, there are those who have taken the long view in terms of energy. Already with the so-called CER 1.0 regulation, even before the publication of the 2024 CACER decree, the Conad supermarket in the “Smart Space” shopping center allowed the preparation of a CER configuration thanks to a 99 kW system, built on the roof of the shopping center . The plant injects more than 100 MWh per year which, through the consumption of various small and medium-sized businesses in the vicinity, will generate benefits from 9 April 2024.
By doing so, a double advantage is created: the owner of the system optimizes his investment, but at the same time allows the shops in the shopping center participating in the CER and other local businesses to benefit from the incentive linked to their energy consumption.
Hill of Todi
In Umbria, a land with a great agricultural and wine-growing vocation, clean energy constitutes a bridge between traditions and the future. This is the case of the Wine Resort Roccafiore, located in the municipality of Todi, which has built a 1 MW photovoltaic system with vertical modules on its estate. The system is entirely available to the CER active in the area which has dedicated a specific configuration to it in the primary reference substation, which redistributes the economic benefits locally.
The goal is not only to produce clean energy, but also to stimulate the surrounding community. In this journey, the collaboration with Enel was fundamental. Now that the plant has started producing, the CER has opened membership, so citizens and small and medium-sized businesses that consume energy in the municipality of Todi and surrounding areas can join. In numbers, we are talking about over 1000 consumer members, including residential and commercial, who will thus be able to benefit from the incentives.
