Description and Assessment of a Small Renewable Energy Community in the Island of Crete, Greece

Abstract

A description and assessment of a small renewable energy community located in Crete, Greece is presented. The community included private residential and agricultural activities without any involvement of the public sector. Small-scale decentralized energy systems were used. Solar energy and solid biomass which are locally available covered most of the heat and electricity requirements in the community. Renewable energy technologies used include solar thermal energy, solar-PV and solid biomass burning utilizing olive tree wood and olive kernel wood. These technologies are mature, reliable, well proven in Crete and cost-effective. Existing energy systems were generating 857,877 kWh per year covering 94.46% of the current energy requirements in the community, significantly reducing its emissions at 278,494 kg CO2 per year. The addition of a new solar-PV system with nominal power of 33.6 kWp could cover all the remaining electricity needs in the community, transforming it to a zero-CO2 emission community due to energy use. The total installation cost of the existing renewable energy systems in the community was estimated at 0.16€ per total kWh of thermal and electric energy generated annually and at 0.50€ per ton of CO2 emissions saved annually. Results indicated that the creation of the above-mentioned small local energy community is economically viable, environmental friendly and socially accepted. Therefore it could be replicated in other territories with similar availability of renewable energies, increasing their energy autonomy and sustainability.