National, regional and municipal climate targets require a total transformation of current energy systems and the production of renewable energy is considered one of the most important actions in this process. However, the ongoing electrification of various sectors leads to a large increase in electricity demand and requires more renewable power generation. These changes bring pressure on the infrastructure, costly investments and challenge the operation of the distribution networks.

It is therefore necessary to reduce and optimize each individual's energy consumption. Establishing local energy communities, which relieve the grid operation, can be a step in the right direction.

What are Local Energy Communities (LECs)?

Local energy communities are when several individuals, households or actors come together and produce and store electricity locally, so that the grid company will be able to operate the grid without having to invest in expensive infrastructure. Given that production and storage takes place within the circuit of one and the same grid station, opportunities are created for improved monitoring and local trade. These allow for a more favorable grid operation and for the creation of business models that facilitate the use of smart grid technology, distributed renewable energy production and storage.

Gains

In order for municipalities to achieve their climate and environmental targets, increased local production of renewable energy is required. Renewable energy reduces greenhouse gas emissions and by utilizing areas that have already been affected by humans, the need for intervention in nature is reduced.

When several individuals, households or actors come together, it will be economically possible for more people to produce their own energy. By sharing the energy locally, consumers are more assured that the power consumed comes from renewable sources, and joint ownership makes it possible to influence decision-making locally.

For network companies, local energy communities will be able to contribute with better local coordination of resources, balancing production and consumption, and making consumer flexibility more accessible. This will reduce the load on the network both in periods when consumption is high, and in periods of high production. In this way, the existing power grid can be utilized better, and the need for reinvestments can be postponed. Local energy communities as a replacement for traditional grid investments can be a cost-effective solution, and will thus be economically beneficial also for grid customers outside the local energy community. Other factors that can be beneficial for the power system and grid companies are increased opportunities for innovation by grid customers, less transmission loss when more energy is produced locally, as well as the opportunities a local energy community gives participants to gain better insight into the power system.

Challenges

In order to be able to produce electricity together in a local energy community and sell this production to the electricity company/grid company, the following elements must be in place:

• Opportunities within regulations
  • 5 July 2022 - The government puts forward an exemption, which means that housing associations will be allowed to share their own renewable electricity between buildings and apartments without the residents having to pay electricity tax and network rent, even if the electricity is through the electricity grid. This also applies to commercial buildings
    
    In practice, it does not matter what kind of house it is, as long as it is within the same property. Eg: Apartment buildings where the housing units are on the same property, commercial buildings with several meters on the same property, condominiums consisting of several houses on the same property, farms with several buildings (and perhaps several meters) on the same property.
  • 27 July 2022 - The Regulatory Authority for Energy (RME) has been commissioned by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (OED) to submit proposals for regulatory changes for consultation to introduce a new model for sharing excess production
  • 5 July 2022 - On behalf of the Ministry of Finance, proposals for changes to regulations on excise duties are submitted for consultation. The proposal applies to exemptions for power from renewable energy sources used on the same property
• Physical attributes such as units for production and possibly storage, infrastructure locally and towards the grid.
• Digital tools such as management systems and delivery of statutory information (e.g. to Elhub) and handling (e.g. balancing), distribution internally in own network, etc.
• Agreements between producers, consumers, electricity/network companies, aggregators etc.

If financial benefits for members of local energy communities lead to an increased financial burden for remaining grid customers, the development may go in the wrong direction. Local energy communities will also be able to burden the grid further if the local energy community's desire to maximize profit or degree of self-sufficiency comes at the expense of what is beneficial for the power system. In order to exploit the opportunities that lie in local energy communities and ensure safe and fair operation, it will be absolutely necessary for a good interaction between the grid company and local energy communities.

How can municipalities facilitate?

The municipality should work more with local involvement and facilitation for local conditions and competence building. There are many ways and levels citizens and households can get involved in local energy communities:

Individual participation

Residents or households can contribute by purchasing green energy, supporting/participating in energy renovations, commitment to a sustainable lifestyle and active participation in the design and operation of local energy communities.

Local energy initiatives

Citizens and households can get involved in the energy system through collective measures. This can be anything from motivating neighbors to save energy, to becoming active market units as part of a local energy community. As of today, the proposed changes for sharing only apply to one property (same farm and utility number). It could be very interesting to work further on being allowed to share production in a neighbourhood, possibly as a trial scheme to distribute costs towards grid companies, etc. This is an interesting project for the research department and some of the customers in NCE.

Energy citizenship through local energy communities

The Clean Energy for all Europeans package gives citizens the opportunity to take a central role in local energy communities. The Norwegian Energy Regulatory Authority (RME) presented the report "Arrangement for the sharing of renewable power production" in August 2021. In July 2022, RME was commissioned by the Ministry of Oil and Energy (OED) to submit proposals for regulatory changes for consultation to introduce a new model for sharing of surplus production. The proposal describes how the settlement regulations and regulations on control of network operations can facilitate customers within the same property to be able to share production. This means that where several customers share a connection point to the grid, they can produce and distribute energy between them, before sending power to the grid as a plus customer. A typical organization for several customers behind one connection point is a housing association. This means that if the electricity has to pass through the measuring point, it is no longer divisible outside the grid, and normal rules for using electricity from the grid apply. One connection point applies to one property, a farm or utility number. How calculation and distribution behind the connection point should take place is assessed in RME's consultation document: Equal distribution, optional distribution key or dynamic distribution key. Per day, only these are practically possible to carry out in elhub. Development of several types of distribution requires research, which Smart Innovation Norway can be involved in.

Energy community as, or with, an aggregator role

Distributed energy resources (DER) are small and medium-sized power resources linked to the distribution network. Aggregators aggregate DERs to engage as a single entity—a virtual power plant—in power or reserve markets. The services they can offer are flexibility in the form of load shifting or cutting consumption. This can be used by Statnett for frequency balancing or by the network company in case of local network challenges.

If you have more questions about the topic, please contact one of us in Smart Communities .

For this, there is a need for data that can be used for daily management, for annual reporting, prioritization of projects and long-term planning. 

The underlying driving forces for increased digitization of the power grid can be summed up as urbanisation, older infrastructure and climate change.  

• Urbanisation : Leads to both an increased need for capacity, but also a reduced need for capacity in areas where the population is decreasing. Digitization makes it easier to check whether the capacity is sufficient, or whether the water is stagnating in the network. 
• Aging infrastructure : Analysis of available data can help the municipality identify areas with the greatest need for investment and detect leaks. Data access provides a basis for the municipality to work proactively by anticipating a reduction in the line's function and looking to improve the line before the damage has occurred.
• Climate change : Smart solutions can help reduce stress on the pipeline network when more extreme events, more intense rain and stormwater that increase the risk of flooding and overflow discharges and increased drought in the summer that limits the capacity of drinking water sources, become more common as a result of climate change. 

As part of digitizing the wiring network, Skiptvet municipality will introduce smart water meters and at the same time utilize the potential that lies in the use of data from smart water meters. 

Data from smart water meters will be used to monitor the status of the municipal network, among other things to make leak detection more efficient. In recent years, Skiptvet municipality has had a water leakage amount of 30%, which requires resources to locate. Leakage water uses large amounts of energy in water production and transport and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and unnecessary costs. Using data from smart water meters will simplify everyday life and free up resources for other important maintenance and operational tasks.

By automatically collecting and processing water meter data, the preparation of the invoice basis can also be made more efficient, including reducing sources of error, increased response rate and less manual handling for both the subscriber and case manager in the municipality. The municipality currently has manual processes for measuring and settling mechanical water meters and spends a lot of time processing cases of missing readings and complaints. Smart water meters make it possible to digitize these services, which will save the municipality resources.

For the resident, they want to offer a more understandable invoice, access to an overview of their own water consumption and the possibility to notify the resident if a leak is suspected. 

In summary, smart water meters can provide a number of benefits, both for the municipality, subscribers and society.

Profits for the municipality

• Reduced costs that benefit subscribers
• Reduction of leaks from 30% to 20%
• Reduced energy consumption
• Better environmental accounting with reduced CO ₂ emissions from treatment plants and pumping stations
• The municipalities will receive lower costs for their own building materials where leakage may occur
• Option to optimize energy management of water pumps
• The municipality will reduce costs for manual scanning and processing of reading cards and reduce complaint handling related to manual measurement and settlement
  

Profits for subscribers

• Subscribers can get reduced public charges related to water
• Reduced damage to property due to leaks, which leads to lower insurance premiums
• Awareness and control of own water consumption
  

Benefits for society

• Vertical data use for new services in a smart-city perspective (e.g. water consumption versus health)
• Shared operating center with other infrastructures, for example electricity, water and district heating
• Increased awareness among subscribers about water will contribute to a general increased awareness in relation to overall climate challenges

The municipality has carried out a pilot in the period September to November 2021, where the municipality tested 2 areas with digital water meters with a view to how the data from water meters can be collected, stored and what is needed to use the data to establish new services in the municipality. The pilot has given the municipality valuable experience and will lay the foundation for future purchases of digital water meters, associated data management and services such as invoice management and leak monitoring.

The pilot has also looked at the costs and benefits of introducing digital water meters and associated services. It was challenging to quantify all the factors included in the benefit analysis, but Skiptvet municipality has quality assured the calculations and assisted with the numbering of the internal items in the benefit analysis. The principle of the profit analysis is that with a profit index above 0, it will be profitable to invest in digital water meters compared to continuing as before. By installing leakage water meters in all households, the profit index will be positive after 10 years of operation of the system and it was therefore decided to install digital water meters in all households in Skiptvet municipality in the coming years.

Money has now been allocated in the financial plan for 2023-2025 for the necessary investments, so that work on the tender can start in the autumn of 2022.

Would you like to know more about how we can help you succeed in smart cities?

- Gives us access to completely new information

The Viking chieftain Tore Hund from Bjarkøy outside Harstad is known as the killer of Olav the Holy. Tore Hund's kingdom contains countless cultural monuments and is a sought-after visitor destination, and now we will finally get an answer to how many people actually follow in the chief's 1,000-year-old footsteps.

One of the anniversaries to be celebrated until 2030 will take place in Tore Hund's kingdom in Harstad in 2023. Cultural relics abound on Bjarkøy, and in 2019 it was confirmed that remains of the Viking chieftain's boathouse had been found on the island. The archaeological excavations were carried out by Tromsø Museum and Troms and Finnmark County Council. The findings show that the boathouse was over eight meters high, and that it housed a ship that was larger than both the Oseberg and Gokstad ships.

- This is proof that there was considerable activity and power centered on Bjarkøy during the Viking Age, Nina Dons-Hansen in Harstad municipality told NRK at the time.

Today, Dons-Hansen leads the municipality's jubilee project, which will start next year. Both the local community and the region are involved and engaged, and the project manager is pleased with the developments taking place in Tore Hund's realm.

- The anniversary is an important reason why we are at the very beginning of many things to make more parts of the area available to the general public, she says.

1,000-year-old Viking history in digital format

One way to increase the accessibility of an area is to make the local history known. In the Island Kingdom in the sea gap outside Harstad, there is history in every rock and in every stone, and parts of the 1,000-year-old story are told through modern and digital technology.

The new-fashioned storytelling is part of the EU's digitization project AURORAL, where Narvik municipality's business company Futurum has a pilot project running in the Narvik and Harstad region together with Smart Narvik, which is the name of the Nordland municipality's smart city initiative. The pilot project focuses on the themes of tourism and mobility.

In spring, digital tools were put out to help the project and Harstad municipality document how many people visit central parts of Tore Hund's kingdom. A QR code has been hung near the Selshevneren spear, a monument erected on Bjarkøy in memory of the Viking chieftain. By scanning the code with a smartphone, visitors get access to text and images that describe what they see in the area.

As part of AURORAL, a person counter has also been placed which registers everyone who passes.

- It was natural to be positive about being part of this. It is important to support the good regional cooperation between Harstad and Narvik, and it will be exciting to see what we can get out of the figures collected in the project through the people counter and the number of downloads of the QR code, says Nina Dons-Hansen.

Forms the basis for new services

The purpose of AURORAL is to strengthen the districts by developing a digital platform where relevant services to the citizens can be offered.

Program manager in Smart Narvik, Mikael af Ekenstam, says that they have clear hopes for the results and ripple effects of the EU project.

- One of the aims of counting people and obtaining data on behavioral patterns is to obtain a knowledge base that can make it possible to, among other things, design new transport services. In the rural areas, you do not have the same mobility offers as in central areas, and you also often lag behind in digital development. AURORAL will contribute to strengthening the economy in these areas, he says.

They also want to look at the possibilities of getting funding for measures that lead to better tourism experiences and less wear and tear on nature. And so the digital storytelling adds a completely new aspect to the Island Kingdom.

Nina Dons-Hansen believes that the data collection in AURORAL can be a good starting point for many things.

- For example, it provides a basis for further development of what already exists in the area. Among other things, Troms and Finnmark county council is involved in developing a cultural trail. Once it is established, we can expand with both more QR codes and other visitor-friendly measures, points out the project manager in Harstad municipality.

Facts about AURORAL in Narvik

Narvik municipality is a partner in the international project AURORAL, which is part of the research and development program Horizon 2020.

In AURORAL, in the period 2021-2024, we will work on developing and testing how digital platforms can make it easier to live and work in rural areas in various places in Europe.

AURORAL has a total of 25 European partner organizations from 10 countries that participate in the project in various roles.

The Hålogaland region is one of the pilot areas in the project, and the other six pilot areas are located in Finland, Sweden, Portugal, Austria, Italy and Spain.

In Hålogaland, the following five destinations are more:

• Stetind
• Tore Hund's kingdom on Bjarkøy
• Beisfjord memorial grove
• Fagerensfjellet
• Rombaksbotn

In addition to the large project group, a local reference group has been put together in Narvik to give input to the pilot project and ensure that we do things that are relevant in view of the local needs. 

The reference group includes representatives from Visit Narvik, Hålogaland Council, Nordland County Council, Midtre Hålogaland Outdoor Recreation Council, Harstad Municipality as well as various tourism and transport companies. In addition, the residents are represented through Skjomen, Beisfjord and Kjøpsvik rural development groups.

CONTACT PERSON
SMART INNOVATION NORWAY:

Michael of Ekenstam ,
presenter Smart Narvik

Telephone: +47 906 300 82

Email

Two million Swedish kroner for the Innocities programme

Now Smart Innovation Norway's smart city model will be developed and offered in Sweden.

Under the name Innocities, Smart Innovation Norway together with Sweco, Mälardalen University and SIQ - Institute for Quality Development - will develop and adapt the Norwegian smart city model to a Swedish context and accelerate the transition to a sustainable society in municipalities, ports and other publicly owned organizations.

- In the grant, Vinnova writes that the project has great potential to succeed and together create a solution that is adapted to the needs of the target group, as well as that the project strengthens the innovative capacity of partners through collaboration. That is exactly what we want, and we enter this project with enthusiasm, high expectations and a big smile on our faces, say Ulrika Holmgren and Marcus Lind Nerhoel - senior advisors for Smart Cities and Communities at Smart Innovation.

Holmgren is project manager and operationally responsible for Innocities.

• Read also: Smart Innovation Norway starts Swedish subsidiary

It is Smart Innovation in Sweden that will lead the project, which has now received funding from Sweden's innovation authority, Vinnova . In the start-up meeting with Vinnova, Sara Hugosson, supervisor at Vinnova, began by saying that "we will experiment together in a new way and create something that helps to change the world!".

The smart city model

Innocities is based on the smart city model that has been developed by Smart Innovation Norway's Smart Cities and Communities department together with 15 Norwegian municipalities, publicly owned ports and energy companies with which they have collaborated since 2011. Through the 15 collaboration programs they have built up a portfolio with over 120 specific innovation projects that all contribute to meeting local sustainability challenges.

- By further developing the model in Sweden (and the Nordic region), the project will contribute to developing the innovation and collaboration capacity of several municipalities, publicly owned ports and energy companies. Innocities will offer a systematic innovation process and methodology for local operational interaction. The purpose is to accelerate the transformation work to achieve the 17 global sustainability goals in Agenda 2030 and contribute to a smart and sustainable social and business development where players in the public sector, academia, business and citizens must increase the pace of the transition together, says Holmgren.

The project is now looking for public actors who want to speed up their green transition. In 2022, it is planned to be able to offer Innocities' innovation program to all Swedish municipalities.

- No single actor is able to solve the challenges we face. With Innocities, we are creating a new way of working together. We increase the capacity for innovation and interaction in the cities' ecosystem, and in that way we create better conditions for managing the transition to sustainable cities and societies, says Elisabet Spross from Innovation Lead Sweco.

• Read also: Innocities - An innovation program to help municipalities with the transition to a sustainable society

FACTS

Smart Innovation in Sweden is part of Smart Innovation Norway, a research and innovation organization located in Halden.

Vinnova - society's innovative solutions: A program that finances InnoCities.

Total budget: SEK 1,998,436.

Project period: 15 October 2021 – 15 March 2023.

Partners: Sweco Sverige AB, Mälardalen University and SIQ – Institute for Quality Development, Smart Innovation in Sweden