Support services for energy communities

The LIFE-2025-CET-ENERCOM grant is part of the EU's LIFE Clean Energy Transition initiative aimed at supporting energy communities and enhancing their roles in the transition to renewable energy. Proposals must be submitted by consortia consisting of at least three applicants from three different eligible EU member states or associated countries. The eligible entities include local authorities, NGOs, energy cooperatives, research institutes, and public-private partnerships.

The funding type is a non-repayable grant, with a contribution of up to €1.75 million per project at a funding rate of 95%. The grant emphasizes fostering renewable energy adoption, energy efficiency, and community-led initiatives, addressing various challenges such as regulatory barriers, lack of information, and difficulties in citizen engagement.

The grant aims to assist projects that are in the implementation and scaling phases, indicating that proposals should focus on advancing toward deployment with concrete plans for capacity building, policy adaptation, and replicable solutions.

The application process involves a single-stage open call, with a deadline for submissions on September 23, 2025. The call seeks to develop and expand support services for energy communities, emphasizing technical support, personalized advice, and cooperative initiatives that enhance the social and economic impact of energy projects.

Successful proposals should illustrate how they plan to engage stakeholders, provide adequate training, and ensure continuity of support post-project. The expected impacts include the establishment and operationalization of energy services, the number of communities benefitting, and measurable outcomes related to energy savings and renewable energy generation.

The grant promotes collaboration among diverse members from eligible countries while encouraging innovative approaches that align with existing frameworks and resources. Overall, it serves to empower local communities in their transition to sustainable energy systems, contributing to broader EU climate goals.

This EU grant opportunity, LIFE-2025-CET-ENERCOM, falls under the LIFE Clean Energy Transition (LIFE-2025-CET) call and aims to establish or expand support services for energy communities. The action type is a LIFE Project Grant (LIFE-PJG) with a LIFE Action Grant Budget-Based [LIFE-AG] model grant agreement. The call adopts a single-stage submission process. The opening date for submissions is April 24, 2025, and the deadline for submission is September 23, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time. The total budget allocated to this topic is 7,000,000 EUR.

The objective of this grant is to support the setup and growth of energy communities, which are recognized as key players in achieving the EU's 2030 and 2050 energy and climate objectives. These communities can channel investments into renewables and energy efficiency, provide community benefits like lower energy prices and local employment, and promote social inclusion. However, energy community projects face challenges related to regulatory contexts, lack of information, limited access to finance, and difficulties in engaging citizens. This grant aims to address these hurdles by supporting services that facilitate the development of new and existing energy communities.

The scope of the proposed actions should focus on establishing or expanding support services to facilitate the setup and growth of new and existing energy communities. Eligible entities for delivering support services include local or regional governments, energy agencies, and umbrella energy community organizations. Proposals that involve the mutualization or sharing of services by umbrella energy community organizations or groupings of energy communities are highly encouraged. The services should focus on supporting renewable energy communities (RECs) and/or citizen energy communities (CECs), and proposals should clearly indicate which types of energy communities are targeted.

The services provided must include direct technical support and personalized advice throughout the different phases of project development, such as access to finance, business model definition, legal advice, energy commercialization, and assistance during the operational phase. Services could also aim at scaling up and professionalizing energy communities through peer-to-peer support and twinning programs. Proposals should specify the type of support offered and how it will be implemented, including staffing and communication channels. A constant physical presence is not mandatory. Approaches that mainly provide generic information, access to guidance materials, or focus on online platforms with limited human interaction are not considered relevant.

The service design should be detailed and justified based on the specific local/regional challenges to be addressed, such as cooperation with Distribution System Operators, rural depopulation, speeding up renovations, tackling energy vulnerability, and facilitating cooperation between citizens and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises.

All proposals should demonstrate the support of necessary stakeholders through direct participation or a convincing strategy for their involvement, provide a credible approach to reach and engage energy community project developers, foresee adequate training and capacity building for staff and actors involved in project implementation, and outline a compelling plan to ensure the continuity of support beyond the project's lifetime.

Proposals should explain the degree of development of communities in the targeted areas, with priority given to areas where energy communities are less developed or where fewer community experiences exist, such as community heating and cooling, citizen-led renovation, and flexibility. Complementarity with existing national enabling frameworks and local support is essential, and proposals should leverage existing resources and networks like the European Energy Communities Facility and the Citizen Energy Advisory Hub. The development of new tools, databases, or digital platforms is discouraged unless their added value and potential for scale-up are clearly justified.

The Commission suggests that proposals request a contribution of up to 1.75 EUR million, but this does not preclude the submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts. A minimum of 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries is required.

Expected impacts include: Number of energy community services fully implemented, operational and tested before the end of the action, number of energy communities benefitting from the support, amount of in-person support made available to energy community project developers, number of energy communities established thanks to the services, number of members who have joined the energy communities because of the support provided, number and type of stakeholders with increased skills, number of local and regional authorities committed to replicate best practice experiences, and number of groupings of energy communities mutualizing services. Proposals should also quantify their impacts related to primary energy savings, final energy savings, renewable energy generation, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and investments in sustainable energy.

Conditions for participation include: Admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout, eligibility of countries, other eligibility conditions, financial and operational capacity, exclusion criteria, submission and evaluation processes, award criteria, scoring and thresholds, indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement, and legal and financial setup of the grants.

Relevant documents include the call document, application form templates, model grant agreements, LIFE Multiannual Work Programme, LIFE Regulation, EU Financial Regulation, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

This funding opportunity aims to foster the growth of energy communities by providing support services that address the specific challenges they face. It seeks to empower citizens and local authorities to invest in renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, contributing to the EU's climate and energy goals while promoting local ownership and community benefits. The grant encourages collaborative projects that build upon existing frameworks and resources, focusing on direct technical assistance and capacity building to ensure the long-term sustainability of energy communities.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types include local or regional governments, energy agencies, and umbrella energy community organizations such as federations and associations of energy cooperatives. The call specifies that proposals must be submitted by at least 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically a LIFE Project Grant (LIFE-PJG) under the LIFE Clean Energy Transition (LIFE-2025-CET) call. The Model Grant Agreement is a LIFE Action Grant Budget-Based [LIFE-AG].

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required. Proposals must be submitted by at least 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is for applicants from different eligible countries, with a minimum of three countries represented in the consortium. The text does not explicitly define which countries are eligible, but it is implied that they are EU member states or countries associated with the LIFE program.

Target Sector: The target sector is clean energy transition, specifically focusing on energy communities, renewable energy, energy efficiency, and citizen engagement in the energy sector. The program also touches upon rural development, renovation, energy vulnerability, and cooperation between citizens and SMEs.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the requirement for at least 3 applicants from 3 different eligible countries implies a focus on EU member states and associated countries.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on establishing or expanding support services. This includes development, validation, demonstration, and potentially early commercialization phases of energy community projects. The call aims to support projects in different phases of project development, from access to finance and business model definition to legal advice, energy commercialization, and assistance for the operational phase.

Funding Amount: The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of up to 1.75 EUR million would allow the specific objectives to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a grant to establish or expand support services for energy communities.

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

Success Rates: The funding rate is indicated as 95% for Other Action Grants (OAGs). This likely refers to the percentage of the total budget allocated to OAGs, rather than the success rate of individual applications. The actual success rate for applications is not provided.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required.

Summary: This opportunity is a LIFE Clean Energy Transition (LIFE-2025-CET) call for proposals focused on establishing or expanding support services for energy communities. The call aims to foster citizen engagement in the energy transition, promote renewable energy and energy efficiency, and contribute to the EU's 2030 and 2050 climate objectives. Eligible applicants include local and regional governments, energy agencies, and umbrella energy community organizations. A consortium of at least 3 applicants from 3 different eligible countries is required. The EU contribution can be up to 1.75 EUR million per project. The call seeks projects that provide direct technical support and personalized advice to energy community projects, with a focus on geographic areas where energy communities are less developed or on types of activities where fewer community experiences exist. The call emphasizes the importance of stakeholder involvement, training and capacity building, and the continuity of support beyond the project's lifetime. The application process is a single-stage submission, with a deadline of September 23, 2025.