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Ponto Energia
Published on 14 April 2021
Portugal
This is the good practice's implementation level. It can be national, regional or local.
About this good practice
Ponto Energia bundles and pools projects according to specific characteristics – mainly investment size, technology and geographies but also other characteristics that make better business sense when pooled (e.g. risk) - using the currently available framework and consolidated procurement procedures to provide projects with scale, bankability, investor-trust, cost-optimization and a faster time-to-market. It makes use of currently existing and innovative instruments, combine them with institutional investors (such investment funds or ESCOs) but keeping in mind the engagement of citizens and local communities by using crowdfunding and cooperative business models to share the benefits of sustainable energy investment. This platform offers several advantages: brings together Promoters (Private organizations or public sector), guiding them from the identification of the potential project to its implementation with the best suppliers, business models and market investors; Experts (energy efficiency and renewable energy service companies) can qualify to receive requests for proposals, participate in tenders and access the best business and financing models for your projects (or your customers'), and finally Investors (credit institutions, funds, private investors, family offices...) gain access the best investment opportunities in sustainable energy, pre-validated, promoted by credible entities and accredited specialists.
Expert opinion
This excellent good practice from Portugal illustrates the high impact that can be reached when a project development platform is built up to support a constant pipeline of sustainable energy investment projects. While it takes significant time and dedicated resources to develop these supportive framework conditions, the pay-off is high and the leveraging effect of public funding, too.
The good practice contains many ingredients that lead to its success: cooperative of all relevant stakeholders over a long time, bundling small similar projects into larger portfolios for easier access to funding and use of scale economies, financial support for the organisation and animation of the cooperation over a sufficiently long time, and ambitious target setting with regularly monitored impact indicators, quantitative and qualitative.
The replication potential for the methodology applied is high, but the whole project is complex and takes time and resources. Managing Authorities could take inspiration from it and examine how to build something similar into their regional operational programmes. No pain, no gain!
The good practice contains many ingredients that lead to its success: cooperative of all relevant stakeholders over a long time, bundling small similar projects into larger portfolios for easier access to funding and use of scale economies, financial support for the organisation and animation of the cooperation over a sufficiently long time, and ambitious target setting with regularly monitored impact indicators, quantitative and qualitative.
The replication potential for the methodology applied is high, but the whole project is complex and takes time and resources. Managing Authorities could take inspiration from it and examine how to build something similar into their regional operational programmes. No pain, no gain!
Works at
Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform
Resources needed
The Ponto Energia initiative is a result of the H2020 BundleUp project, which had an initial budget of 1 million €. Three years later, this initiative has multiplied the initial investment by more than 40 times to 44 million €, with 61 completed projects. AGENEAL total budget is around 82 000 €.
Evidence of success
Since the initial investment, Ponto Energia has boosted the creation of 61 energy projects (LED public lighting, solar energy for self-consumption, solar panels, energy efficiency in buildings and efficient A/C) in more than 20 Portuguese cities, which represent an investment of € 44 million. In view of this success, the European Commission will again invest one million euros in the Ponto Energia project, in a potential investment of another 65 million euros in renewables and energy efficiency.
Potential for learning or transfer
Ponto Energia, is a very interesting platform to implement in other cities/regions because it matches different interests and stakeholders, promoting discussion and financial opportunities while also showcasing success stories, supporting the implementation of energy efficiency that sometimes would be unaffordable to single entities. This Good Practice can also be implemented like a "One-Stop-Shop" for energy efficiency investments for citizens and other stakeholders in order to help, assist, consult and lead them through the whole process of energy efficiency initiatives. The OSS setup can be established with one Energy Agency as a partner for development of technical knowledge bases and technical assistance for citizens.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
AGENEAL, Local energy Management Agency of Almada
Portugal
Área Metropolitana de Lisboa
Contact
Energy, Transport and Mobility Specialist