PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
The main idea of ECOEMPOWER is to support regional authorities in their role of energy community facilitators through the creation of a One Stop Shop (OSS): (I) It is a physical and virtual place where citizens and stakeholders can receive information and assistance through a set of integrated services and digital tools for the set up of energy communities, not only technological support, but also economic, financial, legal, organizational, communicational and educational; (II) It aims at raising citizens’ awareness about potentials and benefits of collective energy initiatives; (III) In the emergence/pre-development phases, it assists citizens and stakeholders involved in the energy communities in analyzing the underlying motivations and expectations, in establishing the project technical, legal, economical and social feasibility and viability, and in providing information about funding opportunities; (IV) During the creation/operation phases it provides assistance in implementing a detailed business model, supports capacity building and guarantees multi sectoral assistance; (V) It will be a networking point between energy communities (including co-learning opportunities), public authorities (from the municipal up to the regional scale), and, when required, technology and financial providers (e.g. RES manufacturers and installers, energy aggregators, ESCOs, DSOs); (VI) It may also act as aggregator of small sustainable energy projects. ECOEMPOWER’ s activities will be developed and tested with the active participation of 5 regional authorities and lead to the creation of 5 regional OSSs and 15 local energy communities. ECOEMPOWER brings together 10 highprofile partners from 6 European countries (IT, FR, DE, CZ, GR, BE), forming a balanced team of complementary institutions including 5 public bodies/associations, 3 research centres and 2 private companies. Finally, other 45 key stakeholders in the 15 pilot sites have already provided Letters of Support.