The policy instrument addressed is the Tuscan ERDF Regional Operational Programme covering the period 2021-2027.

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Tuscany Region

ROP ERDF 2021-2027 allocates resources to actions working towards the 5 Policy Objectives in the European Commission’s Cohesion Policy: PO1 Smarter Europe; PO2 Greener Europe; PO3 More connected Europe; PO4 More social Europe; PO5 A Europe closer to citizens.
PO2 Greener Europe is the objective tackled by the REC4EU project.

Funds targeting renewable energy production for energy communities are made available in Specific Objective (SO) 2.2. Promoting renewable energy sources in line with EU Directive 2018/2001, including all sustainable criteria listed in the Directive.

This SO covers 9.1% of the total ROP ERDF 2021-2027 budget. Tuscany Regions plans to allocate 20M euro to the development of renewable energy communities (RECs), specifically to support renewable energy production by energy communities, including public/private partnerships. With this budget allocation Tuscany Region plans to fund 210 RECs (70 with 200kW power and 140 with 100kW), thus reducing CO2 emission by 14.000 tons per year.

On 17/02/22, the Regional Government approved the strategic and specific objectives of the ROP ERDF 2021-2027, with the submission to the EC by 17/04/2022. With 5 months, plus 1 month for any integrations, the approval from the EC should occur by 17/10/2022. The EC has confirmed that it will be approved no later than December 2022.

The Programme Slovakia 2021 – 2027 is divided into the following 5 cohesion objectives:

Objective 1 A more competitive and smarter Europe: for the development of science, research, building smart citizens and regions, digital solutions for businesses, etc.
Objective 2 A greener, low-carbon Europe: improving energy efficiency, RES, access to drinking water and sanitation, improving waste management, promoting urban mobility including cycle transport, nature protection.
Objective 3 Connected Europe: to complete motorways and expressways, modernize railways, water infrastructure and improve regional accessibility.
Objective 4 Social Europe: to support education, health, the labour market, social services.
Objective 5 Europe closer to the citizen: to promote sustainable tourism, enhancing cultural heritage, etc.

Program Slovakia 2021 – 2027 envisages energy communities under Objective 2 A greener, low-carbon Europe. Specifically, REC4EU addresses the Specific objective 2.2.1 – Priority 2P1 Energy efficiency and decarbonisation.
Under Objective 2, SIEA will be directly participating on part of the implementation of the Program. The opportunities for the Energy Communities will be influenced by the SIEA's conclusions from working with stakeholders and policy makers.

The approval of the Programme Slovakia 2021 – 2027 is expected in the first half of 2022. The first calls from the new Programme Slovakia 2021 – 2027 should be announced in the second half of 2022.

The Energy Development Program was adopted by the Management Board of the Lubelskie Voivodeship in 2009. This document translates national energy policy to regional level and constitutes the basis of regional energy policy implementation. It also feeds into the the Voivodeship Spatial Development plan that constitutes the interpretation of the principles of spatial policy.

Energy Development Program’s purpose is to assess problems and needs of the energy sector in the Voivodeship and, on this basis, propose directions for its development. Proposals must take into account the energy and environmental policy of the state and the economic development needs of the region. The Program does not have its own funding scheme, but proposals can influence allocation of funding sources in the Voivodeship for green growth (infrastructure and other energy related projects).

The Program proposals initiatives related to:
- improvement of the region's energy security;
- fuller use of indigenous energy, both fossil and renewable;
- improvement of the state of the voivodeship's energy infrastructure;
- reducing the negative impact of the energy sector on the environment;
- obtaining the right relationship between centralized and distributed energy.

RECs are not directly cited in the Program, but are fully in line with the above objectives. Participation in REC4EU comes at the perfect time: interregional learning can feed into concrete proposals for support to RECs in the Voivodeship.

The new seven-year programme “Innovation and Skills in Finland” that was approved by the European Union on 5th of May 2022. It offers a framework for long-term regional development.

The objective of the programme is to promote research and innovation capabilities of regions and companies. The funding will advance the growth and competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The cross-cutting priorities of the Innovation and Skills in Finland are sustainable development, gender equality, non-discrimination, digital development, internationalisation, climate change and innovation. These priorities are part of all measures.

The aim of the priority area 2 – Carbon Neutral Finland is to promote energy efficiency and the circular economy and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Total amount of the distribution of ERDF funding at the Tampere region is approximately 2 million euros per year. The share of the priority area 2 will be approximately 600 000 € per year and the share of the programme objective 2 will be around 258 000 € per year. The target of the programme objective 2 is to continue the integration of the energy systems to increase the share of the renewable energy. Another objective is to develop innovative smart solutions to increase the energy production in buildings and the share of energy self-sufficiency by supporting diversification and local solutions for energy production.

Funding will also be allocated to measures to prepare for climate change.

The Decree on Organisation of the Regional Electricity Market, approved in May '22, transposes the 2019/944 & 2018/2001 EU directives. With the decree, the Walloon energy Minster set 2 priorities: to boost renewable energy production and make auto consumption of renewable energy more accessible for all consumers.

The Decree defines 2 new actors (active consumers & energy communities) and a new activity. The new activity is to share electricity (between 2 active consumers, within the same building or an energy community) without the obligation for a supplier licence and respect the requirements that it implies.

Some elements of the decree include:
• No grid fee discount on shared energy
• The grid fee applied to shared energy inside a community is charged by the energy supplier of the customer only
• An authorisation delivered by the regulator is needed to start energy sharing
• Obligation to have a smart meter if you participate in an energy sharing
• SME’s that have as main activity involvement in one or several REC cannot be member
• The perimeter of activities of a REC is geographically restricted
• The legal form of an energy community is free

Despite the decree fully transposing the Directives, it creates many issues that risk constraining development of energy communities in Wallonia in the future and that can be tackled in the bylaws officially foreseen in the Decree. These bylaws leave open the opportunity to make significant improvements in its practical roll out.

The policy instrument is the Andalusia ERDF Operational Programme 2021-2027, Policy Objective 2, Specific Objective (SO): 1,2 and 3, expected to be approved in December 2022.

The 3 SO in the Green Priority Objective aim to increase energy efficiency and renewable energies in Andalusia, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to achieve a new, more participative, smart, efficient and renewable energy system.

This policy instrument offers funding and subsidies for the use of renewable energies in buildings and facilities in Andalusia and for improved energy efficiency, with special consideration for energy communities.

The policy instrument forms parts of regional energy strategies and planning of the Regional Government. It envisages several renewable energy (and energy efficiency) priorities, in specific segments, both public (regional/local) and private (residential/services/industrial). It also envisages support for innovative or under-deployed renewable technologies.
Energy communities will be given preferential consideration, as new actors in the energy sector that bring, in addition to the strictly energy-related benefits, environmental, economic and social benefits.

The ERDF OP will take the form of specific actions, adapted to the reality of the new Andalusian ecosystem of energy communities that is being created, which requires a direct and fluid dialogue with Andalusian stakeholders, from the business and municipal spheres, as well as representatives of civil society.

Through the State-Region Plan Contract (2021-2027) major investment priorities are defined and financial allocations are given to a number of schemes and priorities. The focus within REC4EU is on the multiannual call “Citizen and participatory projects of energy transition”.

This call is updated yearly to take into consideration the evolution of the energy transition topics and the financial allocation granted for the year. The call was launched for 2022 and will be running until 2027.

Its main objectives are:
- to support local actors and citizens to develop renewable energy projects
- to foster the energy transition and social acceptability of renewable energy projects
- to award grants to local stakeholders, such as: citizens companies/organisations/associations, local authorities for:

• decision support in the field of economic, technical and legal decisions,
• organisation of awareness actions for local actors and citizens around renewable energy project,
• technical feasibility studies,
• support for the citizens companies which develop renewable energy projects.

This policy instrument aims to stimulate the development of projects and to federate all the local actors around renewable energy projects. These projects meet the climate challenges as well as social and local economic issues.

The renewable energy projects targeted by this policy instrument relate to different renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic panels, wind turbines, biomass.