Practical Guide on the development of renewable energy communities by citizens, associations and local governments

The Telheiras/Lumiar Renewable Energy Community (Telheiras/Lumiar REC, Portugal) published, in October 2024, the “Practical Guide: Development of renewable energy communities by citizens, associations and municipalities – The example of the Telheiras/Lumiar REC”. The Practical Guide is available in Portuguese and in English.

This document systematizes the 10 initial steps to create an energy community, illustrated through the experience of the Telheiras/Lumiar REC in Portugal, which may also be useful for other emerging energy communities, namely:

1) Pitching the idea to the local community
2) Seeking beneficial partnerships
3) Assessing the legal and regulatory context
4) Selecting buildings and sizing renewable energy systems
5) Defining the legal entity
6) Developing the financial and operational model
7) Defining internal regulations
8) Communicating with the local community and recruiting participants
9) Identifying and including vulnerable families
10) Licensing the renewable energy community

This Practical Guide was written by the promoters of the Telheiras/Lumiar REC – Local Partnership of Telheiras and Lumiar Parish Council – and by the project partners – Coopérnico, CENSE NOVA-FCT and EU Energy Poverty Advisory Hub. The authors hope that this resource will be useful for other energy communities, contributing to a fairer and more democratic energy transition.