IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/renene/v210y2023icp540-555.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Three case studies to explore relevant features of emerging renewable energy communities in Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Musolino, Monica
  • Maggio, Gaetano
  • D'Aleo, Erika
  • Nicita, Agatino

Abstract

The number and importance of renewable energy communities (RECs) are increasing in all European countries due to the support of EU and national policies in order to foster the energy transition through participatory strategies for distributed energy systems. However, their development is rather slow in some countries, including Italy. The paper addressed the issue of the emergence of these socio-technical configurations in Italy, after the related law which entered into force in 2020 allowing the possibility of creating them. Our study focused on the alliances among different actors (professionals, institutions, NGOs, citizens) highlighting possible trends or models for the future that need to be confirmed in further research. The approach proposed to analyse this current process is the Actor-Network Theory, aiming at drawing the assemblages of human and non-human actants at a general level. Accordingly, we selected three case studies in order to show their different ways of organising, the relevance of trust in establishing each REC and the influence of local context on the composition and features of the actor-networks.

Suggested Citation

  • Musolino, Monica & Maggio, Gaetano & D'Aleo, Erika & Nicita, Agatino, 2023. "Three case studies to explore relevant features of emerging renewable energy communities in Italy," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 540-555.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:210:y:2023:i:c:p:540-555
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2023.04.094
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960148123005451
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.renene.2023.04.094?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Piselli, Cristina & Salvadori, Giacomo & Diciotti, Lorenzo & Fantozzi, Fabio & Pisello, Anna Laura, 2021. "Assessing users’ willingness-to-engagement towards Net Zero Energy communities in Italy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    2. Natalia Magnani & Valentina-Miriam Cittati, 2022. "Combining the Multilevel Perspective and Socio-Technical Imaginaries in the Study of Community Energy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-12, February.
    3. Eckaus, Richard S., 1961. "The North-South Differential In Italian Economic Development," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 21(3), pages 285-317, September.
    4. Jason Chilvers & Rob Bellamy & Helen Pallett & Tom Hargreaves, 2021. "A systemic approach to mapping participation with low-carbon energy transitions," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 6(3), pages 250-259, March.
    5. van der Schoor, Tineke & Scholtens, Bert, 2015. "Power to the people: Local community initiatives and the transition to sustainable energy," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 666-675.
    6. Geels, Frank W., 2010. "Ontologies, socio-technical transitions (to sustainability), and the multi-level perspective," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(4), pages 495-510, May.
    7. Chiara Candelise & Gianluca Ruggieri, 2017. "Community Energy in Italy: Heterogeneous institutional characteristics and citizens engagement," IEFE Working Papers 93, IEFE, Center for Research on Energy and Environmental Economics and Policy, Universita' Bocconi, Milano, Italy.
    8. Federico, Giovanni & Nuvolari, Alessandro & Vasta, Michelangelo, 2019. "The Origins of the Italian Regional Divide: Evidence from Real Wages, 1861–1913," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 79(1), pages 63-98, March.
    9. Geels, Frank W., 2002. "Technological transitions as evolutionary reconfiguration processes: a multi-level perspective and a case-study," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(8-9), pages 1257-1274, December.
    10. Francesca Ceglia & Elisa Marrasso & Samiran Samanta & Maurizio Sasso, 2022. "Addressing Energy Poverty in the Energy Community: Assessment of Energy, Environmental, Economic, and Social Benefits for an Italian Residential Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-22, November.
    11. Ahmed Abouaiana & Alessandra Battisti, 2022. "Multifunction Land Use to Promote Energy Communities in Mediterranean Region: Cases of Egypt and Italy," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-24, April.
    12. Federico De Santi & Matteo Moncecchi & Giuseppe Prettico & Gianluca Fulli & Sergio Olivero & Marco Merlo, 2022. "To Join or Not to Join? The Energy Community Dilemma: An Italian Case Study," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-20, September.
    13. Di Silvestre, Maria Luisa & Ippolito, Mariano Giuseppe & Sanseverino, Eleonora Riva & Sciumè, Giuseppe & Vasile, Antony, 2021. "Energy self-consumers and renewable energy communities in Italy: New actors of the electric power systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    14. Ruggiero, S. & Busch, H. & Hansen, T. & Isakovic, A., 2021. "Context and agency in urban community energy initiatives: An analysis of six case studies from the Baltic Sea Region," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 148(PA).
    15. Anna Grignani & Michela Gozzellino & Alessandro Sciullo & Dario Padovan, 2021. "Community Cooperative: A New Legal Form for Enhancing Social Capital for the Development of Renewable Energy Communities in Italy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-15, October.
    16. Darby, Sarah J. & McKenna, Eoghan, 2012. "Social implications of residential demand response in cool temperate climates," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 759-769.
    17. Chiara Candelise & Gianluca Ruggieri, 2020. "Status and Evolution of the Community Energy Sector in Italy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-22, April.
    18. Esther C. Van der Waal & Henny J. Van der Windt & Ellen C. J. Van Oost, 2018. "How Local Energy Initiatives Develop Technological Innovations: Growing an Actor Network," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-19, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Aleksy Kwilinski & Oleksii Lyulyov & Tetyana Pimonenko, 2024. "Renewable Power Systems: A Comprehensive Meta-Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-16, August.
    2. Andrea Sarcina & Rubina Canesi, 2023. "Renewable Energy Community: Opportunities and Threats towards Green Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-21, September.
    3. Julien Lemaire & Rui Castro & Fátima Montemor, 2024. "Empowering Remote and Off-Grid Renewable Energy Communities: Case Studies in Congo, Australia, and Canada," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-19, September.
    4. Dong, Fuxiang & Wang, Jiangjiang & Xu, Hangwei & Zhang, Xutao, 2024. "A robust real-time energy scheduling strategy of integrated energy system based on multi-step interval prediction of uncertainties," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 300(C).
    5. Corsini, Alessandro & Delibra, Giovanni & Pizzuti, Isabella & Tajalli-Ardekani, Erfan, 2023. "Challenges of renewable energy communities on small Mediterranean islands: A case study on Ponza island," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 215(C).
    6. Luca Brunelli & Emiliano Borri & Anna Laura Pisello & Andrea Nicolini & Carles Mateu & Luisa F. Cabeza, 2024. "Thermal Energy Storage in Energy Communities: A Perspective Overview through a Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-27, July.
    7. Almendra Awerkin & Paolo Falbo & Tiziano Vargiolu, 2023. "Optimal Investment and Fair Sharing Rules of the Incentives for Renewable Energy Communities," Papers 2311.12055, arXiv.org.
    8. Riccardo Trevisan & Mara Ladu & Emilio Ghiani & Ginevra Balletto, 2024. "Achieving Net Zero Condominiums through Energy Community Sharing," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-28, March.
    9. Simona Barbaro & Grazia Napoli, 2023. "Energy Communities in Urban Areas: Comparison of Energy Strategy and Economic Feasibility in Italy and Spain," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-24, June.
    10. Pagnini, Luisa & Bracco, Stefano & Delfino, Federico & de-Simón-Martín, Miguel, 2024. "Levelized cost of electricity in renewable energy communities: Uncertainty propagation analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 366(C).
    11. Laura Martiniello & Andrea Presciutti, 2024. "Implementation Models of RECs in Public-Private Partnerships: The Distribution of Risks and Benefits among the Participants in the Operation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-18, August.
    12. Pariman Boostani & Giuseppe Pellegrini-Masini & Jørgen Klein, 2024. "The Role of Community Energy Schemes in Reducing Energy Poverty and Promoting Social Inclusion: A Systematic Literature Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-29, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sadik-Zada, Elkhan Richard & Gatto, Andrea, 2023. "Civic engagement and energy transition in the Nordic-Baltic Sea Region: Parametric and nonparametric inquiries," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 87(PA).
    2. Lode, M.L. & te Boveldt, G. & Coosemans, T. & Ramirez Camargo, L., 2022. "A transition perspective on Energy Communities: A systematic literature review and research agenda," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 163(C).
    3. Anita Tatti & Sibilla Ferroni & Martina Ferrando & Mario Motta & Francesco Causone, 2023. "The Emerging Trends of Renewable Energy Communities’ Development in Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-18, April.
    4. Nima Narjabadifam & Javanshir Fouladvand & Mustafa Gül, 2023. "Critical Review on Community-Shared Solar—Advantages, Challenges, and Future Directions," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-25, April.
    5. Michael Krug & Maria Rosaria Di Nucci & Lucas Schwarz & Irene Alonso & Isabel Azevedo & Massimo Bastiani & Anna Dyląg & Erik Laes & Arthur Hinsch & Gaidis Klāvs & Ivars Kudreņickis & Pouyan Maleki & G, 2023. "Implementing European Union Provisions and Enabling Frameworks for Renewable Energy Communities in Nine Countries: Progress, Delays, and Gaps," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-29, May.
    6. Koirala, Binod Prasad & van Oost, Ellen & van der Windt, Henny, 2018. "Community energy storage: A responsible innovation towards a sustainable energy system?," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 231(C), pages 570-585.
    7. Andrea Sarcina & Rubina Canesi, 2023. "Renewable Energy Community: Opportunities and Threats towards Green Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-21, September.
    8. Binod Prasad Koirala & Ellen van Oost & Henny van der Windt, 2020. "Innovation Dynamics of Socio-Technical Alignment in Community Energy Storage: The Cases of DrTen and Ecovat," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-22, June.
    9. Jordi Molas-Gallart & Alejandra Boni & Sandro Giachi & Johan Schot, 2021. "A formative approach to the evaluation of Transformative Innovation Policies [The Need for Reflexive Evaluation Approaches in Development Cooperation]," Research Evaluation, Oxford University Press, vol. 30(4), pages 431-442.
    10. Capellán-Pérez, Iñigo & Campos-Celador, Álvaro & Terés-Zubiaga, Jon, 2018. "Renewable Energy Cooperatives as an instrument towards the energy transition in Spain," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 215-229.
    11. Catia Milena Lopes & Annibal José Scavarda & Mauricio Nunes Macedo de Carvalho & André Luis Korzenowski, 2018. "The Business Model and Innovation Analyses: The Sustainable Transition Obstacles and Drivers for the Hospital Supply Chains," Resources, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-17, December.
    12. Vincent-Paul Sanon & Raymond Ouedraogo & Patrice Toé & Hamid El Bilali & Erwin Lautsch & Stefan Vogel & Andreas H. Melcher, 2021. "Socio-Economic Perspectives of Transition in Inland Fisheries and Fish Farming in a Least Developed Country," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-34, March.
    13. Lee, Junmin & Kim, Keungoui & Kim, Jiyong & Hwang, Junseok, 2022. "The relationship between shared mobility and regulation in South Korea: A system dynamics approach from the socio-technical transitions perspective," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    14. Kriechbaum, Michael & Posch, Alfred & Hauswiesner, Angelika, 2021. "Hype cycles during socio-technical transitions: The dynamics of collective expectations about renewable energy in Germany," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(9).
    15. Miklós Antal & Ardjan Gazheli & Jeroen C.J.M. van den Bergh, 2012. "Behavioural Foundations of Sustainability Transitions. WWWforEurope Working Paper No. 3," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 46424.
    16. Sara Helen Kaweesa & Hamid El Bilali & Willibald Loiskandl, 2021. "Analysing the socio-technical transition to conservation agriculture in Uganda through the lens of the multi-level perspective," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(5), pages 7606-7626, May.
    17. Johansen, Katinka & Johra, Hicham, 2022. "A niche technique overlooked in the Danish district heating sector? Exploring socio-technical perspectives of short-term thermal energy storage for building energy flexibility," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    18. Jano-Ito, Marco A. & Crawford-Brown, Douglas, 2016. "Socio-technical analysis of the electricity sector of Mexico: Its historical evolution and implications for a transition towards low-carbon development," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 567-590.
    19. van Geenhuizen, Marina & Ye, Qing, 2014. "Responsible innovators: open networks on the way to sustainability transitions," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 28-40.
    20. Walrave, Bob & Talmar, Madis & Podoynitsyna, Ksenia S. & Romme, A. Georges L. & Verbong, Geert P.J., 2018. "A multi-level perspective on innovation ecosystems for path-breaking innovation," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 103-113.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:210:y:2023:i:c:p:540-555. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/renewable-energy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.