Renewable Energy Communities and Smart Grids: Building Loads and Renewables, Development of Optimization and Management Algorithms

Dear Colleagues,

The concept of a Renewable Energy Community (REC) was introduced by the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II), and it is being transposed into national legislations by means of different regulatory actions. The aim of an REC is to increase the share of renewable energy in energy use among the community and improve the energy shared between members. It also aims to achieve a better balance between load demands and energy supply to optimize the welfare of the community by reducing energy consumption, emissions, and costs. In this context, the present Topic aims to collect research on the evaluation of the technical and economic viability of RECs. We are interested in proposals for innovative tools and techniques and articles with a focus on energy sources, the types of renewables used by a community, the kinds of citizens involved, primary energy demand, electric grid features, services, and the related policies of various countries. Original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Renewable energy community planning;
• Smart Grids;
• Local energy markets and trading mechanisms;
• Machine/deep learning applied to the study and optimization of RECs;
• Business and energy models;
• Load management;
• Renewables;
• Storage;
• Photovoltaics;
• Distributed generation;
• Sustainable and efficient buildings;
• Electric power systems.

Dr. Elisa Belloni
Dr. Cristina Moscatiello
Topic Editors