Energy Communities Exchanged Experiences and Best Practices at URBIS

Community energy in Czechia is off to a successful start. The volume of shared electricity is increasing, as are the number of energy communities and people participating in energy sharing. Representatives of energy communities from across the country therefore gathered at a hackathon organised by the Union of Community Energy (UKEN) and Frank Bold’s expert team during the URBIS trade fair to exchange practical experience and explore ways to ensure the successful operation of their projects.

“Czech energy communities have already managed to reduce the necessary costs of coordinating and optimising electricity flows to a minimum. The next step is to increase the volume of shared electricity, for example by investing in their own renewable energy sources or through smart automation,” says Vladimíra Mašindová, the hackathon’s lead coordinator from UKEN and Frank Bold.

The several-hour hackathon focused on improving efficiency and increasing the volume of shared electricity, developing complementary activities alongside energy sharing, fostering operational innovation, and exploring financing opportunities within the current community energy framework.

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The discussions showed that, to remain viable in the long term, energy communities will need to develop activities beyond simply organising electricity sharing among their members. Common examples include energy management, advisory services, project management, and the preparation of technical documentation for investments, such as photovoltaic projects. Participants also agreed that hardware optimisation is one of the most effective ways to maximise the volume of shared electricity.

The hackathon is the first output of the EnerCOMPASS project, supported by Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU). The project aims to strengthen the long-term viability of Czech energy communities by facilitating the transfer of know-how from established communities in Czechia and neighbouring Germany, while also identifying the systemic changes needed to support the further development of community energy.

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