Renewable Energy Communities and the Low Carbon Energy Transition in Europe

Renewable Energy Communities and the Low Carbon Energy Transition in Europe
Author: Frans H. J. M. Coenen
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2022-01-03
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 3030844404

This volume addresses renewable energy communities, and in particular renewable energy cooperatives (REScoops), in the context of the revised EU Renewables Directive. It provides a comprehensive account of the history and development of the renewable energy community movement in over six different countries of continental Europe. It addresses their visions, strategy, organisation, agency, and more particularly the challenges they encounter. This is of particular importance to gain more understanding into how renewable energy communities fare in domestic energy markets where they are confronted with regime institutions, structures and incumbents’ agency that tend to favour maintaining of the status quo while blocking attempts to empower and institutionalise renewable energy communities as market entrants having a disruptive, radical green and localist agenda. This volume will be an invaluable reference for academics and practitioners with an interest in social innovation in sustainable transitions, the role of community energy in energy markets, their agency, as well as an outlook to the impact that the EU Renewables Directive may have to change national legislation and policy frameworks to create a level playing field that is essentially more fair and beneficial to renewable energy communities.

Small-Scale Renewable Energy Systems

Small-Scale Renewable Energy Systems
Author: Sven Ruin
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 187
Release: 2019-10-16
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0429670435

A revolution is ongoing in the field of small-scale energy solutions, which can enable lower impact on the environment, more robust supply and self-determination. Solar power and other forms of renewable energy sources, which you can implement to generate your own electricity, are growing quickly. Electromobility is transforming the car industry and transportation systems and can also play a role in your energy system. Electricity can be used much more efficiently than before, for example by using LED light, variable speed motor drives and efficient home appliances. Smart controls are available, sometimes with free open source software. All this opens up tremendous opportunities for energy independence, which is the focus of this book. The book introduces the reader to a number of renewable energy sources, to different options for storing electricity and to smart use of electricity, particularly in the context of small isolated systems. This is important because many renewable energy sources are weather- and season-dependent and usually require storage and smart control, in order to obtain a system that is completely independent of the electricity grid. In the book, overall system design is explained, including how to combine different sources in a hybrid system. Different system sizes and architectures are also covered. A number of real cases are described, where homes, businesses and communities have achieved a high level of energy independence or are on their way to achieving it. This book will prove useful in university education in renewable energy at bachelor and master level, and also for companies and private individuals, who want to start or expand activities in the area of renewable energy.

Revolutionary Power

Revolutionary Power
Author: Shalanda Baker
Publisher: Island Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2021-01-14
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1642830674

In September 2017, Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, completely upending the energy grid of the small island. The nearly year-long power outage that followed vividly shows how the new climate reality intersects with race and access to energy. The island is home to brown and black US citizens who lack the political power of those living in the continental US. As the world continues to warm and storms like Maria become more commonplace, it is critical that we rethink our current energy system to enable reliable, locally produced, and locally controlled energy without replicating the current structures of power and control. In Revolutionary Power, Shalanda Baker arms those made most vulnerable by our current energy system with the tools they need to remake the system in the service of their humanity. She argues that people of color, poor people, and indigenous people must engage in the creation of the new energy system in order to upend the unequal power dynamics of the current system. Revolutionary Power is a playbook for the energy transformation complete with a step-by-step analysis of the key energy policy areas that are ripe for intervention. Baker tells the stories of those who have been left behind in our current system and those who are working to be architects of a more just system. She draws from her experience as an energy-justice advocate, a lawyer, and a queer woman of color to inspire activists working to build our new energy system. Climate change will force us to rethink the way we generate and distribute energy and regulate the system. But how much are we willing to change the system? This unique moment in history provides an unprecedented opening for a deeper transformation of the energy system, and thus, an opportunity to transform society. Revolutionary Power shows us how.

Energy Democracy

Energy Democracy
Author: Denise Fairchild
Publisher: Island Press
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2017-10-12
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1610918517

The near-unanimous consensus among climate scientists is that the massive burning of gas, oil, and coal is having cataclysmic impacts on our atmosphere and climate. These climate and environmental impacts are particularly magnified and debilitating for low-income communities and communities of color. Energy democracy tenders a response and joins the environmental and climate movement with broader movements for social and economic change in this country and around the world. Energy Democracy brings together racial, cultural, and generational perspectives to show what an alternative, democratized energy future can look like. The book will inspire others to take up the struggle to build the energy democracy movement.

Boiling Energy

Boiling Energy
Author: Richard Katz
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 358
Release: 1982
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9780674077362

This account of the ancient healing dances practiced by the Kung people of southern Africa's Kalahari dessert includes vivid eyewitness descriptions of night-long healing dances and interviews with Kung healers.

The Energy Community

The Energy Community
Author: Dirk Buschle
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2015
Genre: Energy industries
ISBN: 9781780683027

Founded ten years ago to bring stability and investment to the war-torn countries of southeast Europe, the Energy Community has developed into Europe's key instrument to secure energy supplies. Recent developments in Ukraine, one of the Energy Community's members, as well as the incipient debate to create an Energy Union, highlight the importance of this organization and its ever-increasing future relevance. Unlike other international organizations in the energy sphere, the Energy Community is based on the rule of law - namely European energy, competition, and environmental law exported to non-EU countries - as well as pan-European integration. It features a unique set of institutions and procedures. This book offers unprecedented insight into all the relevant aspects of the Energy Community, including the ongoing debate on reform. It is written by officials of the Energy Community and other international organizations, as well as academics and practitioners from legal and consultancy professions. Subject: European Law, Energy Law, Competition Law, Environmental Law]

Energy Communities

Energy Communities
Author: Sabine Loebbe
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 516
Release: 2022-07-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0323911390

Energy Communities explores core potential systemic benefits and costs in engaging consumers into communities, particularly relating to energy transition. The book evaluates the conditions under which energy communities might be regarded as customer-centered, market-driven and welfare-enhancing. The book also reviews the issue of prevalence and sustainability of energy communities and whether these features are likely to change as opportunities for distributed energy grow. Sections cover the identification of welfare considerations for citizens and for society on a local and national level, and from social, economic and ecological perspectives, while also considering different community designs and evolving business models. - Defines and conceptualizes the energy community for the current generation of researchers and practitioners facing the energy transition - Explores the main benefits and challenges in forming energy communities and to what extent they are welfare-enhancing - Examines under what terms, conditions, regulations or policies energy communities can be beneficially and successfully organized and why - Reviews the combination of business models and forms of organization which are conducive to economic feasibility and the commercial success of energy communities

Integrated Local Energy Communities

Integrated Local Energy Communities
Author: Marialaura Di Somma
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 466
Release: 2024-08-20
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3527843299

Introducing a framework for obtaining and maintaining renewable energy security at the local community level Local energy communities are a framework for assembling and coordinating major stakeholders, individual, corporate, and institutional, in the pursuit of long-term renewable energy and carbon-free projects in a given area. They are aimed at community benefits rather than profit, and have become an invaluable tool in the fight to reimagine the global energy grid, one community at a time. With climate change making this fight ever more urgent, integrated local energy communities (ILECs) that enhance the previous concept through a multi-carrier systems’ approach have never been a more important social force. Integrated Local Energy Communities offers a framework for designing, planning, and operating communities from end to end. Incorporating regulatory and policy issues, the mechanics of local multi-carrier energy systems, social aspects and more, it provides viable solutions to one of the most urgent energy challenges of our time. The result is an indispensable contribution to a potentially transformative process. Integrated Local Energy Communities readers will also find: Comprehensive coverage of all types of energy conversion technologies and processes Analysis of the entire value chain, from concepts to planning and operation Discussion of all key factors for integrating the ILEC energy paradigm Integrated Local Energy Communities is ideal for energy engineers, electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, engineering scientists working in consultancy and industry, as well as the libraries that serve them.

Nearly Zero Energy Communities

Nearly Zero Energy Communities
Author: Ion Visa
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 739
Release: 2017-08-31
Genre: Architecture
ISBN: 3319632159

This book addresses the main challenges in implementing the concepts that aim to replace the regular fossil-fuels based energy pattern with the novel energy pattern relying on renewable energy. As the built environment is one major energy consumer, well known and exploited by each community member, the challenges addressing the built environment has to be solved with the consistent contribution of the community inhabitants and its administration. The transition phase, which already is under implementation, is represented by the Nearly Zero Energy Communities (nZEC). From the research topics towards the large scale implementation, the nZEC concept is analyzed in this book, starting with the specific issues of the sustainable built environment, beyond the Nearly Zero Energy Buildings towards a more integrated view on the community (Chapter1) and followed by various implementation concepts for renewable heating & cooling (Chapter 2), for renewable electrical energy production at community level (Chapter 3) and for sustainable water use and reuse (Chapter 4). As the topic is still new, specific instruments supporting education and training (Chapter 5) are needed, aiming to provide the knowledge that can drive the communities in the near future and is expected to increase the acceptance towards renewable energy implemented at community level. The sub-chapters of this book are the proceedings of the 5th edition of the Conference for Sustainable Energy, during 19-21 October 2017, organized by the R&D Centre Renewable Energy Systems and Recycling, in the R&D Institute of the Transilvania University of Brasov. This event was organized under the patronage of the International Federation for the Science of Machines and Mechanisms (IFToMM) - the Technical Committee Sustainable Energy Systems, of the European Sustainable Energy Alliance (ESEIA) and of the Romanian Academy of Technical Sciences.

Levelized Cost of Energy in Sustainable Energy Communities

Levelized Cost of Energy in Sustainable Energy Communities
Author: Miguel de Simón-Martín
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 139
Release: 2022-04-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3030959325

The main aim of this book is to provide a state of the art of the Levelized Cost of Energy calculation for energy communities from both a theoretical, defining a systematic analysis approach, and a practical point of view, providing results for three representative real case studies. The book is structured in four clear chapters which cover everything from the fundamentals of power system configuration and the LCOE concept, to the definition of the aggregated system LCOE and its impact on electricity markets and energy policies. It presents case studies, within multiple examples for energy generation and storage, making it a brief but well-rounded review. The book will be useful for researchers and academics in energy economics, power systems and energy policies, for energy policy makers and students.