Padua, a mid-sized city in northern Italy, is one of the EU Mission Cities aiming to become climate-neutral by 2030. As part of the Mission, Padua has developed a Climate City Contract through a collaborative governance model involving local stakeholders. Among the key actions identified for decarbonisation is the development of Renewable Energy Communities (RECs) to enable a shift from fossil fuel-based energy systems to distributed renewable energy production, which requires coordination among technologies, institutions, and citizens.
Padua is also one of the nine Italian Mission Cities that implemented the NetZeroCities Let’sGOv Pilot Activity, aiming to test new multi-level and multi-stakeholder governance models. Padua’s pilot initiative focuses on the development of a publicly governed Renewable Energy Community with strong social and environmental objectives.
Renewable Energy Communities
Padua’s journey toward Renewable Energy Communities began in January 2023 with the promotion of the “Manifesto of Renewable and Solidarity Energy Communities Padova 2030”, endorsed by numerous local organisations, institutions, and associations. A Technical Working Table, CERS PADOVA 2030, was established to address legal, social, environmental, and energy issues and engage with the national energy services operator (GSE).
In parallel, the Municipality adopted the “Guidelines for the promotion and implementation of Renewable and Solidarity Energy Communities Padova 2030” and conducted a survey of municipal assets (e.g., rooftops, disused areas) for potential photovoltaic installations. Furthermore, the Municipality, in collaboration with the Province of Padua, the University of Padua, the Chamber of Commerce, and Padova Hall S.p.A developed an innovative public governance model for a Multicabina Renewable and Solidarity Energy Community (RSECs). These entities signed a co-design agreement, committing to share data, provide technical and scientific support, identify funding sources, and allocate suitable surfaces for energy installations.
Each partner took specific responsibilities. The Municipality collected socioeconomic and demographic big data with Jakala Civitas, a public-sector-focused digital innovation company, to identify micro-territorial needs, and developed an internal-use dashboard to visualise spatial and thematic data for planning. The Municipality also commissioned an Industrial Plan including solar mapping, organisational structure, financial planning, and performance indicators.
The University conducted feasibility studies and raised awareness among students. The Province and Chamber of Commerce committed assets and outreach support. Padova Hall identified suitable fairground surfaces. Additionally, the Chamber of Commerce is working on a legal and fiscal feasibility study, which is expected to be completed in 2025.
What were the key drivers of the initiative?
- Strong political support from the municipal administration, which initiated the process by promoting the “Manifesto of Renewable and Solidarity Energy Communities Padova 2030”.
- A broad coalition of local institutional, scientific, and associative stakeholders, formalised through the Technical Working Table CERS PADOVA 2030.
- A public governance model, ensuring citizen protection and the preservation of the social goals of the energy community.
- The “Multicabina” partnership structure with distributed roles among various public actors while maintaining full public control. This approach enables coverage of a wide area, including neighbouring municipalities around Padua, following a metropolitan logic promoted by the Province. It allows overcoming administrative boundaries by connecting territories and thereby enabling significant economies of scale.
- Data-driven planning approach, incorporating the use of socioeconomic and demographic data analysis to align actions with the specific needs of micro-territories within the city.
- Legal and financial enablers, including the drafting of a legal-fiscal feasibility study by the Chamber of Commerce and the development of an Industrial Plan, which will include solar mapping, organisational model, financial planning, and performance indicators.
What were the challenges and barriers?
- Bureaucratic complexity: Establishing a Renewable and Solidarity Energy Community (RSEC) involved navigating time-consuming and administratively burdensome procedures.
- Need for multidisciplinary expertise: The process demanded a combination of legal, technical, and administrative skills and professional expertise. This was addressed by establishing the CERS PADOVA 2030 and involving a broad coalition of public, scientific, and associative stakeholders, each contributing specific competencies and resources to ensure an integrated, cross-sectoral approach.
- Regulatory barriers: National and EU legal frameworks posed significant challenges, necessitating in-depth analysis and tailored solutions to ensure the constitution and management of the RSECs. These complexities prompted the Municipality and its partners to initiate a legal-fiscal feasibility study aimed at identifying practical solutions to overcome normative and bureaucratic obstacles.
- Multi-level and multi-actor coordination: The complexity of coordinating multiple actors across institutional levels required the establishment of a clear collaborative framework. It was addressed through a co-design agreement, which outlined specific roles and commitments for each stakeholder involved in the pilot. Despite this, ensuring alignment and engagement among diverse institutions and actors remained a delicate and resource-intensive task.
- Safeguarding the social mission of the RSECs: Guaranteeing that the RSEC remained socially oriented and citizen-focused led to the strategic decision to keep the governance of the community fully public, thereby ensuring transparency, social equity, and inclusivity in decision-making.
- Data-related challenges: A key initial barrier was the lack of granular, up-to-date socioeconomic data needed to support evidence-based planning at the neighbourhood level. To address this, the Municipality undertook a structured data collection and analysis process, producing a dashboard for internal planning and spatial visualisation of socioeconomic indicators. It enabled the administration to tailor actions based on detailed, micro-territorial knowledge.
Potential for Replication
The Padua pilot is designed as a scalable and replicable model, with a public governance structure and clearly defined stakeholder roles. The RSEC multicabina model aims to be a case study for other cities interested in promoting climate neutrality through energy communities. The forthcoming Industrial Plan, the legal-fiscal feasibility study, and the planned constitution of RSEC to be released in autumn 2025 are key steps towards the full implementation and potential upscaling of the initiative.
The main enabling conditions for replication include strong political will, cross-institutional collaboration, and a shared strategic vision among public stakeholders. Access to technical expertise, availability of suitable municipal assets (e.g. rooftops, disused land), and robust socioeconomic data analysis tools are also essential. The use of a data dashboard for micro-territorial planning is particularly transferable.
However, replication may be more challenging in cities with limited administrative capacity, insufficient public assets, or lacking established networks among local institutions. Regulatory complexity may also vary by national context, potentially hindering implementation in cities without legal frameworks that support energy communities.
One of the main lessons learned is the importance of simplifying regulatory procedures and ensuring accessible, citizen-friendly participation mechanisms. The decision to place RSECs under full public governance was crucial in ensuring their social function and fostering public trust. Early and structured involvement of stakeholders, coupled with clear role definitions, was also key to maintaining momentum.
For cities considering a similar approach, it is recommended that they invest early in building partnerships, securing political support, and establishing coordination structures. A comprehensive understanding of the local context through data analysis is fundamental. Greater regulatory clarity and technical support for municipalities could have facilitated smoother implementation – a recommendation to consider for national and European institutions supporting replication.
Header Photo: LNLNLN, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons