Economic Viability of Energy Communities versus Distributed Prosumers

Abstract

As distribution grids are made to accommodate significant amounts of renewable energy resources, the power system evolves from a classical producer-consumer scheme to a new one that includes individual prosumers or energy communities. This article contributes to the exploration of the solution to the dilemma of whether to be a distributed prosumer or an energy community prosumer by comparing the profitability of these two business models. To achieve this goal, a high-resolution methodology is created for measuring economic performance via proposed indices under different development scenarios of renewable proliferation and various network configurations. The developed methodology considers today’s electricity billing and renewable support scheme net metering. The results indicate that, first, the energy community is a more profitable framework than the individual distributed prosumer: avoided costs for energy community are, on average, 20% higher than for the individual, resulting in a payback period of the energy community that is about two times shorter than for owners of rooftop installations. Such promising results should encourage ordinary consumers to be members of energy communities. Second, the energy losses in the power distribution system are slightly higher for the case of energy communities rather than individual prosumers, yet the difference is insignificant, about 0.2%. Third, regulatory barriers shall be removed to enable participation of Latvian prosumers and distribution system operators to the energy communities, as it will benefit all the stakeholders and facilitate economically efficient energy transition. The results of this study could be adopted by decision-makers, such as government agencies, companies, and solar and wind turbine owners.

Decarbonised Future Regional Airport Infrastructure

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Analysis of Wind Turbine Equipment Failure and Intelligent Operation and Maintenance Research

“…However, since it is difficult to quantify the corrosion process theoretically, both the quantity and quality of data are extremely important, which also requires relevant organizations to raise risk awareness and collect adequate data in a timely manner. Petrichenko et al [139] established a high-resolution methodology for measuring economic performance through a proposed index under different development scenarios of renewable energy diffusion and different network configurations by comparing the profitability of two business models: individual distributed consumption and energy communities; the latter proved to be a more profitable framework. However, the initial investment in energy communities is huge and requires governments and investors to improve their decision-making capabilities.…”

Assessment of energy losses in power distribution systems with individual prosumers and energy communities

“…A commonly used rule of thumb in the Latvia allows distributed PV systems with peak powers up to 100% of the peak load on a feeder (or line section) to be installed. However, the majority of the Latvian rural networks are underloaded, and the distribution lines have a sufficient reserve for higher current flows [6]. Therefore, the limits of the installed PV power for an individual consumer can be further extended.…”

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