On 28 November, the event “Energy Communities in the HEDGE-IoT Project” took place. The initiative was co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme and focused on the digitalisation of the energy ecosystem and the integration of Renewable Energy Communities into distribution grids. Watch the video
SUN4U is announcing a new phase of development for Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) in Rome, placing electricity flexibility and energy storage management at the heart of the evolution of publicly driven communities. Through its participation in the Horizon Europe HEDGEIoT project, SUN4U is integrating advanced digital solutions to enable flexibility services and intelligent energy management within RECs, with a particular focus on public urban assets.
SUN4U and the mapping of public assets
The SUN4U platform has mapped approximately 30,000 public rooftops and around 10,000 public buildings, identifying their photovoltaic potential and opportunities for aggregation into new Renewable Energy Communities. This data is freely available on the SUN4U platform and provides an operational basis for public administrations, Third Sector organisations and local communities seeking to promote RECs on public rooftops and properties.
Flexibility, energy storage and the Horizon Europe HEDGEIoT project
Electricity flexibility, together with energy storage management through BESS (Battery Energy Storage Systems), represents the future of publicly driven RECs. These solutions make it possible to modulate generation and consumption according to the needs of the grid and local neighbourhoods. Within the Horizon Europe HEDGEIoT project, SUN4U is contributing with its own pilot, enabling advanced flexibility services while improving grid stability, local self-consumption and the economic benefits available to vulnerable energy users.
Rome Capital’s regulation on Renewable Energy Communities
The recently adopted regulation by Roma Capitale on making municipal areas and photovoltaic installations available for use opens the way for publicly owned rooftops and photovoltaic systems to be used in the establishment of RECs, with a strong focus on their social and solidarity dimension. The regulatory framework makes it possible to leverage schools, municipal buildings and other public properties as shared energy infrastructures, encouraging the involvement of citizens, associations and people experiencing energy poverty in Renewable Energy Communities.
Towards smart public Renewable Energy Communities
The integration of the municipal regulation, SUN4U’s mapping of public rooftops and the digital solutions developed within the Horizon Europe HEDGEIoT project makes it possible to configure RECs as genuine smart, distributed and resilient public infrastructures.
Today, in Rome, thanks to remuneration for flexibility services, combining REC installations with energy storage systems is becoming increasingly economically attractive—not only to maximise self-consumption, but also to modulate flexible loads, particularly batteries, thereby increasing overall profitability.
This apparently complex process can be supported by SUN4U’s consortium partners. For further information, please contact: info@sun4u.it
In this context, electricity flexibility and BESS storage systems are becoming key tools for transforming public and private rooftops into neighbourhood energy hubs capable of reducing emissions, increasing the resilience of local grids, tackling energy poverty and strengthening social cohesion across the city.
