On 30 April, in the headquarters of the Castello inhabitants’ cooperative, the Renewable Energy Community “Castle Green House cooperative society”. 42 members participated in the foundation as “energy consumers” as well as the Castello cooperative itself as a “producer” member.
It is the first Cer in a cooperative form in the province of Ferrara and one of the first in Italy established on the basis of the new legislation for the widespread self-consumption of renewable energy which came into force on 24 January 2024 (Cer Decree) and adopting the “Operational Rules” for access to the service, published by the Energy Services Manager (GSE) in March 2024.
These are the regulations which finally in our country, albeit almost three years late compared to other European countries, transpose and implement the 2018 EU Directive of 2021, the so-called “Red II”, aimed at increasing the share of renewable energy for reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the heating and cooling of buildings and in the transport sector.
“The Cer Castello Green House – he declares Massimo Buriani, newly elected president of the cooperative – was created with environmental, social and energy saving purposes for its members and the community. It is open to all citizens, small and medium-sized businesses, third sector bodies, local authorities, condominiums that intend to produce energy from renewable sources for their own consumption and the virtual sharing of excess energy produced among consumer members. of the community”.
“Shared energy – he continues Loredano Ferrari, president of the Cooperativa Castellofrom which the initiative to establish the Energy Community started – will be incentivized by the GSE for twenty years with a premium rate that will be shared by the Cer among the different categories of member members: final consumers, energy producers and producers with self-consumption, in proportion to the production and consumption levels of each member”.
Also Paolo Barbieri, president of Legacoop Estense, expresses great satisfaction with the objective achieved and thanks Buriani and Ferrari for their commitment: “We are proud to have been alongside the Cooperativa Castello in these months of hard work and many uncertainties. Our technicians, together with those of Coopfond, Legacoop’s mutual fund, analyzed the legislation and accompanied the cooperative, in real time, in preparing the statute and regulations, as well as providing financial support. It was a great challenge and we are certain that the Castello Green House will be a point of reference for the entire Ferrara area.”
The first operational project of the new Cer will be the management of the photovoltaic systems that will be installed on all the buildings owned by the Castello cooperative in the municipalities of Ferrara, Copparo, Comacchio. These are 1300 photovoltaic panels with a total power of 520 kWp, which will ensure a production of approximately 600,000 kWh of electrical power per year. In a second phase, it will be possible to broaden the cooperative’s social base with the entry of new members.
