Establishing an energy community to help achieve energy self-sufficiency in a housing cooperative
In the past, it has been mainly detached houses and businesses that have had private electricity production, but nowadays housing cooperatives and office buildings can also make full use of electricity they have produced themselves. This is possible with the new energy communities.
The idea of an energy community is to acquire shared production equipment, such as solar panels, for a housing cooperative, for example. When a community is established, a percentage of the share of the self-produced electricity is determined for each apartment in the housing cooperative. This share determines how the self-produced electricity is distributed among the apartments, i.e., the members of the energy community.
Mikko Kylli, head of development at Oulun Energia Sähköverkko Oy, says that establishing an energy community in a housing cooperative is worthwhile because it reduces the need for its members to buy electricity.
“In addition, by building a solar power plant, the housing cooperative will contribute to increasing the use of renewable energy sources. The electricity produced with your own small-scale solar power plant is entirely renewable electricity free of a carbon footprint,” adds Kylli.
Self-produced and self-consumed electricity is not subject to the electricity network service fee or duty on electricity, which also reduces the network service electricity invoice. Establishing an energy community is free and the community to be established must be in the network area of Oulun Energia Sähköverkko Oy.
We have compiled a comprehensive information pack on energy communities and their establishment. For more information, see here.
