Andalusia saw the implementation of 58,000 new self-consumption installations in 2024 despite the national stagnation, bringing the total number of installations in the region to over 171,000. The installed capacity in homes and businesses to generate part of the energy they demand reached 1,560 megawatts by the end of last year, representing 11% of the renewable capacity installed in Andalusia.
The region has a great potential for green generation and extensive experience in the development of self-consumption projects, as evidenced by the fact that these types of installations have multiplied by 65 since 2019.
The advantages Andalusia has for the implementation of these energy communities have been shared by the Andalusian Energy Agency, an entity attached to the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mines, at the fourth meeting of regional experts of the European project REC4EU organized by the Agency.
During this meeting, the Andalusian Energy Agency presented the analysis carried out on the state of energy communities in the various partner countries of the project, confirming that Andalusia is ahead of the rest of the European regions in the field of energy communities, with enormous growth potential, ample surface area available for self-consumption, significant cost reductions in installation, and a consolidated business sector around renewable energies.
Economically, there is a wide market for the development of energy communities, while socially, there are already established energy communities and very active promoter groups committed to this model.
Furthermore, Andalusia shows a strong political commitment through various plans and strategies, such as the boost provided by the Andalusian Government to collective self-consumption and energy communities through a public-private collaboration model and with local entities, which will materialize, following the Agreement of the Government Council on February 24th, in a roadmap being developed by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mines.
The objective is to promote the implementation of, at least, 1,000 new installations for collective self-consumption, solar communities, and energy communities, in order to achieve a capacity of 68 megawatts by 2026. The Roadmap also aims to promote industrial self-consumption as a means to enhance the competitiveness of companies and improve the environmental performance in Andalusian production spaces.
The energy community of Torreblanca as an example of good practice
During this fourth meeting of Andalusian experts in the REC4EU project, the Andalusian Energy Agency also presented to attendees examples of projects identified as good practices at the European level, from which other partners can learn to replicate successful solutions in their regions.
In the case of Andalusia, the cases presented as good practices were the first energy community fully developed in a vulnerable environment, in the Sevillian neighborhood of Torreblanca, as well as the experience of the ECO Granada Community Transformation Office of the Granada Provincial Council, which is promoting the development of energy communities at the local level.
The initiative REC4EU, in which the Andalusian Energy Agency participates as the sole Spanish representative, along with seven partners from six countries (Italy, Slovakia, Poland, Finland, France, and Belgium), is part of the ‘Interreg Europe’ program, which aims to improve governance at the territorial level and services for the creation and development of renewable energy communities.
At the regional level, this project involves the collaboration of a group of experts composed of 40 Andalusian entities that contribute their knowledge and experience to the development of energy communities, while also learning from the other European partners involved in this project.