Renewable energy technology (RET) solutions in energy communities

The HORIZON-CL5-2026-2-PRIZE, part of the Horizon Europe program, is a €1 million recognition prize aimed at honoring energy communities that have demonstrated innovative governance and effective management of renewable energy technology (RET) solutions. The competition invites eligible applicants, primarily energy cooperatives, community-based organizations, local energy enterprises, and possibly local governmental bodies, to showcase their operational achievements.

The funding is structured to reward up to ten winners: with the top prize of €350,000 for first place, €200,000 for second, €100,000 for third, and €50,000 each for the remaining seven positions. This recognition award intends to motivate these communities by celebrating successful management practices rather than financing new project developments.

The application process is a single-stage submission, opened on January 20, 2026, and closing on June 25, 2026. Evaluations will focus on assessing criteria such as governance innovation, sustainability, and replicability of solutions.

The prize supports broader EU objectives, particularly regarding climate neutrality and the integration of renewable energy into local governance structures. Eligible applicants are required to demonstrate proven operational practices, typically being functional for a minimum of 2 to 3 years, and contribute to EU climate and urban sustainability missions.

Overall, the HORIZON-CL5-2026-2-PRIZE serves as a mechanism to inspire others in the field of energy management, reinforcing models that can be replicated across Europe while addressing the challenges of energy community management, governance, and service provision.

The HORIZON-CL5-2026-2-PRIZE call, under the Horizon Europe program, aims to recognize and reward Governance Innovations in Energy Communities, specifically focusing on Renewable Energy Technology (RET) solutions. This is a Horizon Recognition Prize (HORIZON-RPr). The total budget allocated for this prize is 1,000,000 EUR. The call adopts a single-stage submission process, with the opening date set for January 20, 2026, and the deadline for submissions on June 25, 2026, at 17:00 Brussels time.

The specific challenge addressed by this prize is the diverse challenges faced by individual energy communities. These challenges include developing successful and inclusive governance structures, engaging various actors, creating effective business models, and integrating activities within the European Commission's territorial, regional, and local plans, such as Just Transition Plans and Climate City Contracts.

The prize aims to inspire Energy Communities to enhance their operations, implementation activities, and foster innovation in achieving climate goals by rewarding innovative governance structures and the management of RET. It also intends to serve as an example for other communities, encouraging them to become energy communities and accelerating the development of existing ones.

The prize will showcase best practices from awarded communities to others facing similar challenges, providing a replicable framework for successful issue resolution. This incentivizes communities to adopt these practices, improve their performance and management, and participate in future prize calls.

The prize also addresses bottlenecks in management, governance structure, and service provision encountered by Energy Communities. It will highlight successful business models that include and promote various services while improving social aspects within the community. By showcasing governance innovation, the awarded communities will offer a clear, replicable framework for overcoming common challenges and barriers.

Furthermore, the prize is expected to contribute to the broader goals of the EU Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities. It will demonstrate the pivotal role energy communities can play in achieving climate neutrality at the city level by embedding their activities within strategic approaches like Climate City Contracts, aiding cities in transitioning to sustainable and resilient urban environments.

The total prize money of €1 million will be distributed among up to 10 winners as follows:

1st place: €350,000
2nd place: €200,000
3rd place: €100,000
4th to 10th place: €50,000 each

The general conditions for participation, including admissibility, eligibility, financial and operational capacity, exclusion, evaluation, award criteria, submission processes, indicative timelines, and legal and financial setup, are all described in the Rules of Contest.

The call documents include the Rules of Contest and application form templates available in the Submission System. Additional documents include the HE Main Work Programme 2025 (General Introduction, Climate, Energy and Mobility, and General Annexes), the HE Programme Guide, the HE Framework Programme 2021/695, the HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, the EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Terms and Conditions, Privacy Statement, and the Prize Governance Innovations in Energy Communities website.

The Funding & Tenders Portal provides access to the Electronic Submission Service. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests.

Applicants are advised to carefully read all provisions and consult the Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk, ETSI Research Helpdesk, the European Charter for Researchers, and the Partner Search tool.

In summary, this Horizon Europe Recognition Prize aims to incentivize and reward energy communities that demonstrate innovative governance and management of renewable energy technologies, contributing to the EU's climate neutrality goals and providing replicable frameworks for other communities to follow. The prize money is substantial, and the application process is detailed, with numerous resources available to support potential applicants.

Eligible Applicant Types: Energy Communities are the eligible applicants.

Funding Type: This is a recognition prize.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity appears to be targeted towards single energy communities, although the possibility of collaboration within a community is not explicitly excluded.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is described in the Rules of Contest for this prize. The text mentions National Contact Points (NCPs) existing in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’), suggesting that the scope may extend beyond the EU.

Target Sector: The target sector is renewable energy, specifically renewable energy technology (RET) solutions within energy communities. It also focuses on climate, energy, and mobility.

Mentioned Countries: The text refers to EU and non-EU countries, as well as non-associated third countries.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on rewarding existing, innovative governance structures and management of renewable energy technologies (RET), suggesting projects that are already in operation or implementation.

Funding Amount: The total prize money is €1 million (EUR 1,000,000), to be awarded to up to 10 winners. The prizes are allocated as follows: 1st place: €350,000, 2nd place: €200,000, 3rd place: €100,000, 4th to 10th place: €50,000 each.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single stage.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a prize.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rate can be estimated at 10 out of all the applicants.

Co-funding Requirement: The need for co-funding is not mentioned.

Summary:

This Horizon Europe call, titled "Renewable energy technology (RET) solutions in energy communities (HORIZON-CL5-2026-2-PRIZE)," is a recognition prize aimed at energy communities that have demonstrated innovative governance and effective management of renewable energy technologies. The European Commission has allocated a total of €1 million to be distributed among up to 10 winners. The goal is to inspire energy communities to improve their operations, promote innovation in achieving climate goals, and serve as examples for other communities. The prize seeks to address challenges faced by energy communities, such as developing inclusive governance structures and effective business models. By showcasing successful practices, the prize aims to provide a replicable framework for overcoming common barriers and bottlenecks. The call is part of the broader EU Mission on Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, emphasizing the role of energy communities in achieving climate neutrality at the city level. The application process is a single-stage open call, with the submission deadline on June 25, 2026. The call encourages energy communities to apply and share their best practices in renewable energy management and governance. The funding is distributed with a top prize of 350,000 EUR, and further prizes of 200,000 EUR, 100,000 EUR and 7 prizes of 50,000 EUR.