Renewable Energy Community (REC) — Neighbourhood PV Sharing

Several buildings, flats or businesses join forces to share PV, heat pump and storage energy — cutting grid charges and maximising self-consumption.

How does an energy community work?

A renewable energy community (REC, in Austria "Erneuerbare-Energie-Gemeinschaft" or EEG) is an association of at least two participants who jointly generate, share and consume electricity from renewable sources. In Austria this has been possible since the EAG (Austria's Renewable Energy Expansion Act) of 2021. A building's PV surplus is no longer simply exported but is allocated on paper to other members via the public grid. The basis is the 15-minute readings from all participants' smart meters: every quarter hour, the grid operator determines how much generation is attributed to which consumption, according to a static or dynamic allocation key. A REC is locally limited, with all members connected to the same grid area. A citizen energy community (CEC, in Austria "Bürgerenergiegemeinschaft" or BEG) may operate across several grid areas but receives no reduced grid charges in return. The community sets its internal electricity price itself, typically €0.08 to €0.15/kWh, and distributes the proceeds according to its statutes.

Which properties benefit from an energy community?

The prerequisites are at least two members with a generator and a consumer, smart meters for all participants, and registration with the grid operator via the EDA platform. Typical constellations are residential neighbourhoods, multi-family house communities, cooperatives and business parks in which one building has surplus during the day and another consumes at the same time. If members are located in different grid areas, a CEC must be founded instead of a REC. Combinations of businesses with daytime consumption and residential buildings with large roof areas are particularly economical.

What does an energy community actually deliver?

Members save 15 to 40 % of their electricity costs. The benefit has two components: first, the difference between the grid purchase price (€0.22/kWh) and the internal REC price (€0.10/kWh); second, the reduced grid charges that the EAG provides for electricity shared within the community, by 28 or 57 % depending on grid level, around €0.025/kWh in the standard case. A residential neighbourhood with 50 MWh/a of PV sharing achieves a benefit of around €7,250/a for the community. Founding costs for notary and registration are €1,500 to €5,000; the metering and billing system costs €50 to €150 per meter per year. Payback is 1 to 3 years over a 20-year service life.

Energy carrier

Strom Netzbezug → Strom Eigenerzeugung (geteilt)

Savings potential

15-40 % Stromkosten der Mitglieder

Worked example

In a residential neighbourhood, several multi-family houses with PV systems and households without their own roof space join together to form a renewable energy community. Based on the quarter-hourly smart meter readings, 50 MWh, i.e. 50,000 kWh, of PV surplus is shared within the community each year that would previously have flowed into the grid at the feed-in tariff. Members pay an internal price of €0.10/kWh for it instead of €0.22/kWh for grid purchases, saving 50,000 × (0.22 − 0.10) = €6,000/a. In addition, the grid operator reduces the grid charges for the shared electricity, assumed here at €0.025/kWh, which yields a further 50,000 × 0.025 = €1,250/a. The community's economic benefit therefore amounts to around €7,250/a. How it is split between generators and consumers is governed by the community's statutes.

Investment & payback

Gründungskosten EEG (Notar, Registrierung): 1.500-5.000 €; Abrechnungs-/Messsystem: 50-150 €/Zähler/Jahr · Service life: 20 a · Payback: 1-3 a

Applicability

Requirements

Exclusion criteria

Typical buildings

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a renewable energy community (EEG) and a citizen energy community (BEG)?

A renewable energy community (EEG) is locally or regionally limited, all members are connected to the same grid area, and it receives reduced grid charges for shared electricity. A citizen energy community (BEG) may operate across several grid areas and also with non-renewable sources, but receives no grid charge reduction in return. If members are located in different grid areas, the BEG is the only option.

How much do you save in an energy community?

Members of an energy community typically save 15 to 40 % of their electricity costs. The benefit consists of the cheaper internal price, around €0.10 instead of €0.22/kWh, and the reduced grid charges of around €0.025/kWh. A neighbourhood with 50 MWh/a of shared PV electricity achieves around €7,250/a for the community, which is distributed between generators and consumers according to the statutes.

How much does it cost to set up an energy community?

Founding a renewable energy community costs €1,500 to €5,000 for notary, association or cooperative registration and enrolment. Ongoing costs of €50 to €150 per meter per year are added for the metering and billing system that processes the quarter-hourly readings and produces the internal billing. With a payback of 1 to 3 years, the energy community is one of the most economical PV-related measures.

Do you need a smart meter for an energy community?

Yes, smart meters with quarter-hourly metering activated are mandatory for all participants. Based on the 15-minute readings, the grid operator allocates every generated kilowatt-hour to a consumer and applies the grid charge reduction automatically. Participation is not possible without a smart meter. Registration of the community and data exchange run via the EDA platform (Energiewirtschaftlicher Datenaustausch, Austria's energy industry data exchange).

Which laws govern energy communities in Austria?

Energy communities are governed by the EAG (Renewable Energy Expansion Act) 2021, sections 16 to 19; ElWOG (Austria's Electricity Industry and Organisation Act) sections 16a to 16c define joint use and the role of the grid operator. The EAG-EEG Regulation specifies registration and billing. The reduced grid charges of 28 or 57 % depending on grid level, together with the exemption from electricity levy for shared electricity, are the central economic incentives.

Related measures

Standards & sources

Metering points in the EDM Toolbox

DIE Killer-Anwendung für EDM Toolbox im Quartier: Smart-Meter-Daten (15-min) aller Mitglieder aggregieren, Sharing-Schlüssel berechnen, Abrechnungsfähig (revisionssicher). Perfekt für ICP 3 (Asset Manager) und ICP 4 (Energieberater als EEG-Manager).

All measures