Profitability of Energy Supply Contracting and Energy Sharing Concepts in a Neighborhood Energy Community: Business Cases for Austria

Abstract

To ensure broad application of renewable and energy-efficient energy systems in buildings and neighborhoods, profitable business models are vital. Energy supply contracting helps building residents to overcome the barrier of high upfront investment costs while additionally reducing risks related to energy-saving mechanisms. This study examines profitability for energy contractors in a variety of business cases that simultaneously ensure energy cost savings for the residents. A mixed-integer linear optimization model is developed for a neighborhood energy community, consisting of three buildings with diverse usages. In the process, the optimum capacities of building-attached and building-integrated photovoltaics, a heat pump and a gas-fired mini combined heat and power unit are determined to cover the energy community’s electricity and heat load. Results show that cross-domain contracting within energy communities is highly profitable for both, the contractor and the residents, while the extent depends on the accounting method, assumed interest rate and depreciation time. The additional application of energy-efficiency measures in/on the buildings, constituting a combination of energy supply and energy performance contracting, further increases profitability. The investigation of several sensitivities shows that high grid energy costs for electricity and gas enhance profitability of local energy technologies, leading to an increase in optimal technology capacities.