Energy transformation: first entry in the list of citizen energy communities maintained by the President of URE
On 11 April 2025, the MES-TOWN Łódź Citizen Energy Community Association was entered on the list of citizen energy communities (CECs, OSE in Polish).
The OSE MES-TOWN Łódź Association will engage in the generation, consumption, and storage of electricity from photovoltaic installations. Additionally, it has declared its intent to carry out social initiatives aimed at promoting and facilitating the installation of renewable energy sources. The entity will operate within the distribution system managed by PGE Dystrybucja.
What are citizen energy communities?
CECs are regulated by the amendment of the Energy Law Act of 2023.
Beginning on 24 August 2024, CECs can apply for registration in the register maintained by the President of URE, which is mandatory[1].
CECs[2] are entities with legal capacity whose primary objective is to deliver environmental, economic, or social benefits to their members, shareholders, associates, and the local communities they serve. Their activities are founded on the principles of voluntary and open participation by the entities that constitute them.
Members of the communities can only be natural persons, local government units as well as micro and small enterprises for which activities in the energy sector is not their primary business activity.
CECs may engage in:
- generation, consumption, distribution, sale, trading, aggregation or storage of electricity;
- providing other services on the electricity markets, including systemic services or flexibility services;
- implementing projects to improve energy efficiency;
- providing charging services for electric vehicles;
- generation, consumption, storage or sale of biogas, agricultural biogas, biomass and biomass of agricultural origin.
CECs may operate within the area served by a single distribution network operator. They can take the form of a cooperative, a housing cooperative or farmers’ cooperative, a housing association, an association (excluding ordinary associations), or a partnership (excluding professional partnerships)[3].
The association opens a catalogue of entities in a list kept by the Regulator.