Project information
PROJECT TITLE: Danube Energy Communities Accelerator
Acronym: DECA
ABOUT THE PROJECT
The Danube Energy Communities Accelerator (DECA) project is aimed at supporting the Danube Region's transition to higher renewable energy use, energy independence, climate neutrality, and prosperity.
DECA's mission is to accelerate citizen-led renewable energy initiatives, address common needs in the region, and support the Interreg Danube programme's priority. By testing solutions that can enable decentralised renewable energy production and empower renewable energy self-consumers and communities, DECA aims to unlock the potential of underutilised renewable energy resources in the region.
Why is this important? The underdevelopment and inadequate support of community energy action in the Danube Region are challenges that need overcoming. Accelerating renewable energy is crucial for reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels and enhancing the resilience of Danube Region communities. DECA recognises the untapped opportunities for increased energy security, local prosperity, and a move towards renewable energy and climate neutrality within the region.
Citizen-owned energy systems take centre stage in DECA's approach as they emerge as key drivers for a just energy transition. Community energy action not only promotes decentralised renewable energy production but also ensures equitable local sharing of value generated from renewable energy sources. The ripple effects include cost-savings, job opportunities, enhanced energy security, community reinvestment, skills development, improved social connections, resilience, and better living conditions.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES
The DECA project aims to address these common challenges through jointly developed solutions, pilots, and a joint strategy to accelerate community energy across the region. Through the pooling of knowledge, experiences, skills, networks and expertise, this transnational collaboration and co-creation process will enable our 12 diverse and experienced project partners to jointly develop, promote and adopt the following common solutions to shared challenges:
- Community Energy Capacity Development Solution (Output 1.1): Training covering the fundamentals of community energy initiatives and social enterprise skills will be jointly developed, tested (Output 1.2), and refined for adoption and ongoing use.
- Community Energy Project Pipelines Toolkit (Output 2.1) - a practical resource that includes a core methodology for robust community energy action development and a set of replicable, innovative community energy action concepts that can be adopted and tailored to local applications.
These solutions will have been tested through application in local pilot projects (Output 2.2) and then refined for adoption and ongoing use.
These outputs will benefit the whole community energy ecosystem in the region, which comprises of citizens and community groups, support organisations (sectoral agencies, NGOs, utilities, education institutions), policymakers and strategic bodies (local, regional, national authorities and territorial institutions) and private sector (business support organisations and SME’s that are technology, service and product providers for renewable energy systems).
Potential solutions will be tested through piloting in 9 countries of the Danube programme area: Slovenia, Croatia, Slovakia, Austria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Hungary, Romania and Serbia.
Ultimately, we will use learnings from this work to develop a Danube Community Energy Acceleration Strategy (Output 3.1) - for a network of community energy acceleration hubs that will sustain and expand support for community renewable energy action across the Danube Region, into the future.
Together, the developed solutions and strategy will provide a powerful common platform to accelerate innovation and action on community energy across the region and make a meaningful impact on the region’s clean energy transition.
LEAD PARTNER: E-zavod, SI
PROJECT PARTNERS:
- Goriška Local Energy Agency, Nova Gorica, SI
- Korimako, SI
- KLIK, energy cooperative, HR
- Island Development Agency, HR
- Technical University of Kosice, SK
- EGTC Alpine Pearls ltd, AT
- Regional Education and Information Centre for sustainable development in South East Europe, BA
- Agency for development and business support, ME
- National Society of Conservationists, HU
- Center for Sustainable Energy Development Ilc, RS
- Agency of Brasov for the Management of Energy and Environment, RO
PROJECT BUDGET: Total 2.045.335,00; Interreg Funds 1.636.268,00
E-ZAVOD’S ERDF BUDGET: 198.388,00 EUR
PROJECT DURATION: 1.1.2024 – 30.6.2026
Link to the project page: https://interreg-danube.eu/projects/deca
