The questions a municipality or a citizen asks us before working with us. If yours is not here, write to us at [email protected] - we will add the answer within the following week.
Ordered from 'how do I start' to 'how do I run it'. Short answers, each with a link to the page with the details.
A group of at least a few members (citizens, the municipality, a school, SMEs) who produce renewable energy together, consume it and share the surplus. See REC and CEC in the glossary for the legal definitions.
It depends on the legal form you choose. For a cooperative (Law 1/2005): 5. For an association (Government Ordinance (OG) 26/2000): 3. For a municipal SRL (limited company): 1 shareholder. STUP Standard recommends a minimum of 5-10 members for operational viability, whatever the legal form.
Typically 6-12 months: 4-6 months from zero to a community registered with ANRE (Romania's energy regulator) and a funding application submitted, plus 3-6 months of installation after the funding is approved. Details on the How we work page.
The investment for an average community (100-500 kWp) is between EUR 80,000 and 500,000. Public co-financing covers most of it: up to ~98% for certain calls under PTJ (Programul Tranziție Justă, Romania's Just Transition Programme, funded by the EU Just Transition Fund) in Just Transition regions. Details on the EU funding page. Get a quick estimate with the Savings calculator.
Stup de Energie is the programme of ARSC (Asociația Română pentru Smart City, the Romanian Smart City Association) through which we set up and run communities. The contract is signed with ARSC. From 2027-2028, the operational side moves to Stup Energie Studio SRL - the dedicated subsidiary. See the About page for the full structure.
You: the political decision, identifying the eligible public buildings (schools, town hall, health clinic, sports hall), the Local Council decisions, signing the contract. Us: everything else - feasibility, the grid connection permit (ATR) with the DSO, legal form, statutes, ANRE registration, funding application, installation coordination, monthly reporting, maintenance. In detail on How we work.
Yes. The information on communities is public, the funding is public, the legal framework is public. Three typical obstacles: (1) time - a proper PTJ application takes 200-400 person-hours; (2) technical expertise - sizing PV+storage+EMS on a real consumption profile is a specialism; (3) monthly operation - settlement, reporting, selling the surplus, maintenance for 5-10 years. Many start on their own and call us in month 4. See the packages.
The reductions seen in existing EU cases are 20-60%, depending on: the self-consumption rate (how much the community consumes directly), storage capacity, members' consumption profiles and grid tariffs. An installation without storage typically reaches a 30-40% reduction. With storage: 50-60%+. Get a concrete estimate with the Calculator.
The owner is the community (the legal entity). The money from the surplus is shared among members according to the allocation key set in the statutes. Typically: one part goes to members (in proportion to consumption), another into a common fund for maintenance, development and battery replacement.
Yes, if the community is well designed. The model: the investment is funded mostly from EU funds, and day-to-day operation (reporting, maintenance, software) is covered by monthly income - either from selling the surplus or from a fixed fee per member. A well-sized EMS and a reserve fund (5-10% of annual income) keep it sustainable for 10+ years.
The questions we get from citizens who want to join a community or start one in their neighbourhood. Ordered from how it works → what you need to do → special situations.
The energy is produced at the community's installation - usually panels on the roof of the town hall, the school or a shared building. A smart meter measures every kWh produced. Then your electricity supplier deducts from your bill the part that matches your share of the production. You change nothing at home: the grid is the same, the meter is the same - only the 'amount due' column gets smaller.
Yes, but a smaller one. You stay connected to the public grid and keep your contract with your supplier. The energy produced by the community shows up as a direct reduction on the bill - typically between 20% and 60%, depending on the self-consumption rate, storage capacity and members' consumption profiles.
No. Your supplier has no bearing on membership of an energy community. Stay with the one you have now. The reduction appears automatically on your existing bill, month after month.
The energy produced by the community is deducted from members' bills. At the end of the month, your bill will show less billed consumption and therefore a smaller amount to pay. For a first estimate, our calculator tells you how many kWp can be installed on the available roofs and what bill the community would avoid - you then scale it to the average member.
It depends on the community model. Options: (1) zero - the community is fully funded from EU funds through the municipality, and you benefit through a lower bill; (2) partial - you become a member with a small share (EUR 100-500) and get a proportional share of the production; (3) full - you personally fund some of the panels and get a proportional share.
Yes. The community can include the homeowners' association, the municipality (for nearby public buildings) and individual citizens. The simplest form: the homeowners' association signs as a legal entity, the panels are fitted on the roof of the block and the energy is shared among the flats.
Yes, if the contract with the supplier is in your name (your name is on the bill). If the landlord pays the bill and includes it in the rent, then the landlord is the one who joins as a member - not you. You could renegotiate the tenancy agreement, if it suits you both.
In general, solar installations produce more than members consume at any given moment. The surplus is sold to the supplier under a compensation agreement. The money goes into the community's account and shows up as a monthly reduction on your bill - in proportion to the allocation key set in the statutes.
Yes, provided you respect the statutes and the agreements you signed. There is typically a notice period of 3-6 months and clear conditions for leaving - so that the installation and the other members are not hit suddenly. No member is locked in for ever; a community is voluntary by definition.
The community uses the public electricity grid for distribution. If the grid goes down, the energy produced by the community cannot be used at that moment either - it works like any other connected consumer. To keep going during outages you need a storage system (batteries), which is included in the project if the budget allows.
There are options that do not need the municipality at first: a citizens-only community (association or cooperative), a community started by a school or a private health clinic, a community of local SMEs. Write to us at [email protected] and we will explain the steps for your case.
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