Community energy is key to action on the climate crisis. It can empower people, boost local economies, and reinvigorate communities. Community-led initiatives play an important role in the transition towards a 100% renewable and just energy future. Success stories of community energy projects can be found all over Europe. At REScoop.eu, we want to highlight these stories to further accelerate the movement towards a cleaner and democratic system. 

This month, we are travelling to France to learn more about Énergie Partagée, the national federation of energy communities, and how it supports new projects by helping them access EU funds and technical assistance. 

Stronger together: how networks drive the community energy movement

For many new energy communities, the early stages can be daunting. Understanding the national regulatory and administrative framework, choosing their business model, securing finance for their first project(s), or managing a group and collective decision-taking are common challenges. This can often be a make-or-break moment, and without proper support, many promising initiatives struggle to get off the ground.

In countries with a well-established, mature community energy movement, energy communities tend to create secondary structures, most notably federations. These networks usually function as one-stop shops for (starting) energy communities, helping them navigate complex legal and bureaucratic obstacles, build a robust business model, access finance, and attract new members to the community. These networks are key to helping new initiatives thrive.

Bégawatts Photo collective Bégawatts
A new citizen windpark opens in France © Bégawatts

Case in point: Énergie Partagée. Since its founding in 2010, this French national network of energy communities has supported more than 400 citizen-led projects, 280 of which are operational, generating an estimated 535 GWh of clean energy annually by 2025 – enough to power over 1.4 million citizens.  

A key pillar of Énergie Partagée’s work is its citizen savings investment fund, Energie Partagée Investissement. With €46 million invested in over 160 renewable energy projects – spanning solar, wind, hydroelectricity, biomass and heating – this financing scheme has inspired community leaders in Belgium, Romania, and Spain to create their own Community Energy Financing Schemes, in the context of the LIFE ACCE project. Beyond financing, Energie Partagée plays a leadership role in the French community energy movementby leveraging its National Resources Center, Energy Communities Observatory, and team of capacity-building experts. It coordinates 13 regional support networks that offer technical assistance, capacity building, and awareness raising activities on the ground.

Voices on the field – the impact of regional networks

“I am a board member of Energies Citoyennes en Pays de Vilaine, a member of Energie Partagée, working closely with two regional networks, RECIT (Région Pays de Loire) and TARANIS (Région Bretagne). These regional networks are crucial to spread information and provide technical, organisational, and legal support to citizen project owners,” Edgar Wolf explained, highlighting the impact of these regional networks.

Continuing, Edgar stated: “We particularly appreciate the fact that we share important values concerning project governance, citizen finance and participation, as well as environmental issues.”

Marion Richard, head of national coordination service at Energie Partagée, shares the same opinion: “Regional networks are an efficient way to channel public funds: they capitalise on the knowledge and experience of their members, pool resources, and share expertise through Energie Partagée’s national network. Institutional partners, such as regional governments and ADEME [the French Agency for Ecological Transition], recognise the key role they play in the emergence and growth of community energy.”

Making EU funds work for energy communities

Research by REScoop.eu shows that despite significant funding opportunities in the current EU budget (2021-2027), very few of the eligible EU funds are actually reaching energy communities. Many of these initiatives find the application process too complex and bureaucratic. The lack of dedicated technical assistance also disempowers (smaller) communities from applying. At the same time, the authorities responsible for managing these funds often remain unaware of the existence of energy communities and their specific needs, impacting their ability to design the right funding calls. How can we square this circle? 

The same research shows that the most effective way to ensure EU funds actually reach the ground is to tap into community energy expert organisations. Recognising this, three French regions have allocated part of their European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) budgets to co-finance Énergie Partagée’s regional networks, complementing funding from their own budgets, improving fund distribution while diversifying financial sources. 

Through ERDF support, these regional networks can provide long-term technical assistance and facilitate knowledge sharing among energy communities. This structural funding strengthens their ability to support new initiatives, ensuring EU funds create real impact on the ground.


“To keep up with the rapid growth of citizen-led renewable energy projects in Région Pays de la Loire, our regional network, RECIT, needed to expand and diversify its financial resources. Thanks to ERDF co-financing, we were able to meet the sector’s needs and secure financial stability over four years,” explained Claire Legrand, facilitator at regional network RECIT in Pays de la Loire.

A model for replication across the EU

This structural funding support, channelled by the French regions, allows these regional networks of Énergie Partagée to co-finance their missions of first level free technical assistance, capacity building and guidance on accessing regional and EU funding opportunities. This peer-to-peer approach has been instrumental in growing the French community energy movement. 

As more and more community energy networks emerge across Europe, including in Central and Eastern European countries supported by the LIFE COMET project, it’s worth reflecting on how EU funds can be (co)managed by expert networks like these. Direct engagement with energy communities on the ground ensures that public funding reaches the initiatives it is meant for, ultimately contributing to a more effective use of public budgets. 

Chris Vrettos, project manager in REScoop.eu, underlined the potential of scaling up this peer-to-peer financing model: “Policy makers should leverage the ongoing negotiations around the next EU budget to acknowledge the crucial role of community energy federations in co-managing EU funds. Community energy federations, or similar intermediaries, should also be recognised as beneficiaries of the Social Climate Fund, to support the emergence of citizen-led initiatives tackling energy poverty and developing building renovations and heating and cooling systems.”