Beli Breg REC – Citizen Shared Energy
Status: In Progress (Phase 1)
Location: Serbia, Vranje, Beli breg Community
Duration: 6 months (Phase 1)
Funded by: European Union, Regione Emilia-Romagna, ART-ER
About the Project
The Beli breg REC - Citizen Shared Energy project is a pilot program designed to establish the foundations for a Renewable Energy Community (REC) in the Beli Breg community (Vranje region). This first phase focuses on building the social, organizational, legal, and data-related infrastructure necessary for citizens to produce and share clean energy.
By addressing rising energy poverty, inefficient housing, and energy costs in the Beli breg community, the project aims to create a sustainable model for energy independence.
Vision and Purpose
The Beli Breg Energy Community envisions a self-reliant agricultural community where locally generated renewable energy reduces household energy bills, strengthens economic resilience, and demonstrates a practical pathway to energy independence for small rural settlements throughout the Vranje region.
The initiative addresses critical challenges faced by rural households in Serbia:
High and volatile electricity costs from grid dependence.
Limited opportunities for household-level renewable investment in smaller communities.
Need for climate action and reduced fossil fuel dependence.
Desire to retain economic value within the community rather than flowing outward to external energy suppliers.
What is an Energy Community?
An Energy Community is a legal entity that allows citizens, local authorities, and small businesses to organize collective energy actions. Unlike traditional energy markets where consumers simply buy power from a utility, an energy community transforms residents into "prosumers" - active participants who produce, manage, and share energy locally.
The core purpose of the Beli breg REC is to provide environmental, economic, and social benefits to its members and the local area, rather than generating financial profit.
Democratic Participation: The community is based on open and voluntary membership with a transparent and member-owned governance structure.
Energy Solidarity: The project explores the creation of a solidarity fund.
Local Sharing: Using the ART-ER Energy Management Tool, the community will simulate load profiles to size systems and test self-consumption scenarios.
Legal Frameworks and Community Models
To ensure the most effective model for the Beli breg community, the project evaluates the following legal frameworks under Serbian law:
Renewable Energy Community (REC): Based on the Law on the Use of RES, this model focuses exclusively on renewable sources like solar, wind, and biomass. Membership is open to individuals, SMEs, and local governments located near the project site.
Citizen Energy Community (CEC): Grounded in the Law on Energy, this model has a broader scope, primarily focusing on electricity activities including production, supply, aggregation, and storage.
Local Energy Community (LEC): Defined by the Law on Energy Efficiency, this model focuses on energy efficiency measures and local district heating systems.
Project Objectives & Phases
The implementation follows a strategic four-step process:
Step 1 - Stakeholders engagement and community activation: Identifying and training local community leaders
Step 2 - Vision and governance model definition: Developing a democratic decision-making model and a formal non-profit legal structure.
Step 3 - Energy data collection and REC Financial plan: Utilizing the ART-ER Energy Management Tool to analyze consumption and design a fair energy-sharing model.
Step 4 - Legal establishment of the organisation acting as a REC: Formally registering the REC in accordance with Serbian laws on Renewable Energy Sources (LoURES).
Key Performance Indicators - KPIs (Phase 1)
Outreach: Minimum of 8 public events and workshops.
Media Presence: At least 10 media mentions and a cumulative online reach in the hundreds of thousands.
Engagement: Collecting more than 50 expressions of interest from local residents.
Membership: Enrolling at least 10 founding members into the REC.
Partners
Platform for Energy Transition (PET): Responsible for overall project management, technical coordination, and regulatory guidance.
ART-ER (Italy): Providing the technical framework, capacity-building training, and monitoring tools.
Photo by Чигот - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=34849914