Ireland’s Climate Action Plan calls for 80 percent renewable electricity by 2030. With that deadline approaching, community-led projects are gaining ground as a practical route to decarbonisation, particularly in rural and agricultural regions where centralised solutions often struggle. Under the umbrella of INNO-TREC, four Irish partners – EPRI Europe, DCSix Technologies, University College Cork and the Dingle Hub – have joined forces to launch one of six European demonstration sites funded by Horizon Europe, with Ireland’s pilot centred on solar-powered agricultural communities.
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The demonstration is targeting a 25 percent reduction in energy costs, a 30 percent increase in self-consumption and a 50 percent improvement in grid support. These are ambitious targets – most renewable energy communities still face daunting hurdles, from complex legal requirements and steep upfront costs to a lack of reliable tools for managing local systems. INNO-TREC seeks to bridge regulatory and grid-access bottlenecks with free, web-based platforms guiding communities from planning up to daily operations.
Lessons from Berlin
Similar ambitions are shaping Germany's community energy debate. Berlin's Solar Package I, adopted in 2024, introduced simplified grid connection rules for systems up to 30 kW and expanded tenant electricity schemes, while the coalition agreement commits to raising the community energy share of new renewable capacity to 50 percent by 2030. The German Energy Agency estimates that citizen-led projects could unlock up to 8 GW of additional solar capacity if administrative barriers are further reduced.
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“Ireland's agricultural sector offers a unique opportunity to demonstrate how renewable energy can be integrated efficiently and sustainably,” said Mario Couto, project lead at EPRI Europe. “This demonstration is about more than technology; it's about empowering people,” said Deirdre de Bhailís, general manager at Dingle Hub, a community enterprise centre on the Dingle Peninsula. “If successful, this model could be replicated across Ireland to help meet the country's climate targets.”
INNO-TREC will run through June 2029, with parallel demonstrations in Greece, Belgium, the UK, Italy and Portugal. (TF)
