Award Nominees WiseGRID & REScoop PLUS

WiseGRID integrates, demonstrates and validates advanced ICT services and systems in the energy distribution grid in order to provide secure, sustainable and flexible smart grids and give more power to the European energy consumer.

Its main objective is to provide a set of solutions and technologies to increase the smartness, stability and security of an open, consumer-centric European energy grid. The project will combine an enhanced use of storage technologies, a highly increased share of renewable energy sources and the integration of charging infrastructure to favour the large-scale deployment of electric vehicles.

Real-life demonstrations

WiseGRID’s solutions will be tested and demonstrated for at least 15 months under real-life conditions at 4 sites in Belgium, Greece, Italy and Spain in cooperation with renewable energy cooperatives and distribution service operators.

Creating jobs and new services

WiseGRID goes beyond empowering consumers. On top of this consumer-centric approach, it aims to help create an open market in which new players such as electric cooperatives and SMEs have an active role. This will make energy a more democratic system, creating a win-win situation for the grid
and consumers.

The REScoop PLUS project helps renewable energy cooperatives (REScoops) to go beyond producing and supplying energy to making sure that energy is saved at the same time. The project team is creating a toolkit, including communication material and ICT tools for measuring energy use and business models, to support cooperative members in saving energy.

Wide geographical coverage

Implemented in 8 European countries – Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands and Spain – REScoop PLUS benefits from wide geographical coverage. The project team has identified legal and cultural barriers throughout Europe and worked with citizens’ groups and policymakers to ensure that the toolkit meets local needs.

Toolbox

The tools are based on successful activities from around Europe. One collects smart meter data to give consumers information on their current energy use and another provides consumption forecasts. Both give tips on how to lower consumption, while a training programme raises cooperative members’ energy awareness. Studies carried out on the REScoop PLUS project show that these tools have the potential to cut energy use by between 11.42% and 60.31%.

District heating

Another element of the project involves the setting up of district heating. The aim is to offer the service of heating to as many people as possible at a low cost and help the most vulnerable cooperative members to renovate their heating systems.

Tools and practices developed by REScoop PLUS have already been deployed by 10 renewable energy cooperatives, both within and outside of the project consortium. This proves that the toolkit can be implemented around Europe and a European tour is now underway to encourage more REScoops to use it.

Every year the European Commission (Directorate-General for Energy and EASME) organises the EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) – the biggest event dedicated to renewables and efficient energy use in Europe. This year’s tagline is ‘lead the clean energy transition’, and it will cover a series of activities with an EU-wide scope.

REScoop is the European federation for renewable energy cooperatives. We are a growing network of 1,500 European REScoops and their 1,000,000 citizens who are active in the energy transition. Our members produce and supply renewable energy, operate distribution networks, perform energy efficiency, perform aggregation, engage in energy sharing, and provide electric car-sharing.