Getting started with community energy

Heather Smith • 23 August 2020
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You've been to climate marches, you've watched Fight for Planet A.

You want to see our energy system change for the better - and you've heard about community energy.

But how does anyone get started doing energy at the community level?

You've come to the right place. Click on Knowledge Resources in the top menu to start learning about community energy. And to pique your interest, here's a potted history of community energy in Australia to show you the various ways others have created a movement of energy citizens in their neighbourhood.

Solar energy started to become commercial around 2010, so before that time wind energy was the main renewable energy source taking off. Hepburn wind were the pioneers in developing wind at a scale and with a model that worked for community. Denmark in WA followed suit. Of course, we were decades behind Denmark in Europe who have supported wind development since the 70's and often develop their energy projects at community scale and with community investors.

Most community energy groups in Australia have promoted rooftop solar and are only now starting to push for larger scale developments as the cost of solar continues to drop. The cost effectiveness of rooftop projects has been a necessary ingredient in making projects successful. These are often called 'behind the meter' projects. If the solar energy is part of a customer's energy bill it can be valued at the price that customer pays for electricity. When renewable energy projects connect directy to the electricity grid (without a customer) that value can be almost halved.

I cover some of the different models that community energy groups have developed below but before we go there, its worth commenting on all the energy options:

  • Energy efficiency! Often the most cost-effective projects, groups have looked at ways to help people make their buildings more energy efficient, more comfortable - helping the local economy and reducing emissions in the process. 
  • Bioenergy: Biogas and biomass projects will be led by the availability of the raw energy resource of organic material, often as a waste stream. These might not be the obvious energy solution for communities but they are fuels that can be stored, so can be part of the solution.
  • Hydro is also a resource that is used widely in other countries but Australia lacks some of the traditional use and plentiful resource. The Upper Yarra community hydro came online in 2018 and is worth checking out.
  • Community Batteries and demand management are two newer technologies that are discussed whenever we talk about integrating lots of renewable energy into the electricity grid.
  • What does the future look like? As we move away from gas and petrol, we are sure to see communities taking an interest in hot water and space heating, electrifying industry, electric vehicles and mobility alternatives to cars. Possibly even hydrogen.

The community energy sector is like an innovation eco-space. Because it is a new sector we see groups trying all sorts of different initiatives. Because it is constrained by the structure of the energy market and the energy sector is itself in transition, we see the need to be constantly talking about what works and what might be possible. We have characterised  solar projects as follows:

  • Multi-site, multi-family projects like solar bulk buys help whole neighbourhoods get the technical support they need and good prices, to go solar. Apartments and strata groups have specific space and ownership challenges. We've seen bulk buy models run by communities, councils and commercial operators - there are many ways to go.
  • Donation models like CORENA use donated money to install solar in ways that benefit the community, such as installing solar on community buildings or using a business model that returns benefit to local groups.
  • Investment models make a return for those that provide the original capital. The goal of these projects varies - some groups are trying to get ordinary investors to love renewable energy, others recognise that patient capital is needed to ensure a project succeeds and therefore have much more modest returns. Cooperative models marry the investment returns with democratic governance to shape the project in ways that is considered fair for a wide variety of members.

Other community energy groups haven't rushed to projects, instead they've set goals, created action plans and, in the case of ENOVA, created their own energy retailer.

This site has a whole series of guides designed to get you started and there might be something already happening near you. Most importantly, this is designed to be a space we you can meet and learn. Community energy groups are incredibly generous with their own experiences. Our Congress is held every few years and we run regular webinars to keep the information flowing. Please join us and together we can change our energy systems for the better.