MET Group, a European integrated energy company, has announced the two winning projects of the first edition of the Green CommYOUnity awards for the most remarkable energy communities in Spain – together with leading non-profit association ECODES. Through these awards MET supports the transformation that energy communities carry out by promoting sustainability and energy efficiency.
The energy communities of Arroyo Alumbra (Arroyomolinos de León) and Manresa Ilumina (Manresa) are the winners in this first round of the awards. Both projects have been recognised for their work as promoters of the local community and drivers of employment.
The Arroyo Alumbra community brings together a diverse group of more than 30 local residents who promote and manage local projects in the field of energy efficiency. The community also carries out important educational work through initiatives such as "La Energía del Cole" to raise awareness of the impact of energy consumption among students. As a result, the co-operative has received recognition in the category of mature energy communities.
Manresa Ilumina has been awarded the prize for best project in the category of initial phase projects. This energy community focuses on self-generation of solar power to supply 31 SMEs in the area establishing itself as a link between energy production and local demand, promoting the fair distribution of energy. In addition, the project also envisages incorporating other services such as shared mobility or heating networks.
The two winning projects are clear examples of the relevance of energy communities in the local environment, as well as their fundamental role towards a more sustainable society. Manresa Ilumina is the first business energy community in Spain and its goal is to provide services for the improvement of energy, ecological and economic management to its members. These can be any company from the Bufalvent industrial estate, or from any other industrial estate with economic activity in Manresa. In addition, the cooperative plans to launch thermal energy projects in the short term through a biomass heat network, renewable energy from the forests of Bages or the aggregate purchase of renewable electricity to meet the demand that solar installations cannot cover.
In the case of Arroyo Alumbra, the initiative aims to ensure that the local population plays a specific role in managing shared self-consumption facilities. The community is formed by students and families that today already have rooftop solar on the Ecoescuela. The solar power serves collective self-consumption, owned by the citizens, and the energy produced is distributed between the school building and about 30 local family homes. As well as promoting conscious energy consumption, they also want to play a role in stopping migration away from the settlement.
In this first edition, the prize money was 25,000 euros, divided into two categories. First, the prize awarded by the professional jury to Arroyo Alumbra 15,000 euros plus 5 hours of energy expert consultancy provided by MET Spain. Second, the recognition awarded to Manresa Ilumina by the vote of MET Group employees, is 10,000 euros plus 5 hours of energy expert consultancy provided by MET Spain.
The award ceremony was held at the MET Energía España offices in Madrid. During the ceremony, a round table with energy experts and the two winning communities was held to discuss the challenges of the energy transition in Spain.
Ángel Crespo, CEO of MET Energía España highlighted: "The importance of energy communities lies in their local character: they are driven by citizens who actively participate in energy-related initiatives, contribute to the transition towards clean energy and promote energy efficiency in local communities. This is highly representative and represents a paradigm shift in traditional energy production and consumption, creating platforms for conscious and responsible consumption and production.
Christian Hürlimann, Renewables CEO of MET Group added: "We highly appreciate the attitudes and results of the winners and many more applicants whose stories have been revealed to us. Their responsibility, independence and entrepreneurial spirit are attitudes that we consider key to our corporate culture. With their local vision, energy communities transform the problem into a solution. The work of the two winning organisations demonstrates that conscious and organised energy consumption can bring solutions and economic benefits to different actors in society.
Carlos Pesqué, Deputy Director of the Energy and People Area of ECODES said: "Energy communities contribute to the ecological and energy transition by providing a decentralised and participatory response. For this reason, at ECODES we put all our efforts into promoting their development. This joint recognition with MET Group helps us to give them visibility and encourages others to follow their example".
MET Group
MET Group is an integrated European energy company, headquartered in Switzerland, with activities and assets in natural gas and power markets. MET is present in 15 countries through subsidiaries, 30 national gas markets, and 39 international trading hubs. MET has extensive experience in operating green (renewable) and flexible (conventional) energy assets, thus providing the widest possible support to energy transition. In 2023, MET Group’s consolidated sales revenue amounted to EUR 24.5 billion, with a total traded volume of natural gas amounting to 88 BCM and total traded electricity of 68 TWh.
ECODES
ECODES is a non-profit organisation that has been working since 1992 to find partners in the three key sectors of change (public bodies, private sector and civil society organisations), supporting them to accelerate their transition towards a carbon neutral, inclusive, responsible and circular economy, framed in a new governance, through innovation and partnership building.