CROWDTHERMAL has developed reports on social, environmental and financial aspects of community-financed geothermal projects:
• A case study assessment protocol (GEOPLAT) has been established to assess the overall perception of the process, concerns and needs, as well as public acceptance and engagement factors.
• A report on geothermal environmental factors (UofG) presents a state-of-the-art literature review of environmental factors influencing public support of geothermal energy projects.
• The stakeholder and case study analysis (IZES) reflects on the results of qualitative interviews and contextual analyses in the CROWDTHERMAL case studies in Hungary, Iceland, and Spain.
• The guidelines for public engagement (IZES) deal with the topics of why public engagement is important in geothermal energy projects, why comprehensive planning of participation measures is crucial, and how a constructive communication strategy can serve risk and conflict prevention. In addition, a report on the Social License to Operate (SLO) for geothermal energy (GEORG) has been produced.
• CrowdfundingHub has prepared a report on best practice examples of renewable energy projects in Europe using alternative financing methods at different stages of their development.
• An alternative finance risks inventory and potential mitigation tools have been developed (GeoT, now VES) about key advantages, potential risks and possible mitigation measures for different alternative finance methods.
• A report on the regulative framework for community funding (CrowdfundingHub) analyses the infrastructure formed by ownership structures, energy production, distribution and financial legislation.
• A report on innovative financing mechanisms for geothermal energy (CrowdfundingHub) describes alternative and innovative finance schemes that can be used in the future to increase the involvement and commitment of community members in geothermal projects.
• The proposed Play Type independent geothermal exploration risk mitigation scheme (VES) presents the conceptual framework for a European geothermal exploration risk mitigation scheme.
The project findings were then integrated and deployed into a set of Core Services for communities, project developers and local authorities, including:
- Decision Support Tool (UofG, LPRC): An algorithm for developers and promoters of geothermal projects to select the most efficient social engagement strategies and financial instruments to be implemented for their respective scenario and context.
- (Meta-)database of geothermal projects for alternative finance (EFG, LPRC): GIS-based database of geothermal projects with details on national frameworks and ongoing geothermal projects in Europe.
- Interactive guide to integrated finance in geothermal energy (CFH, LPRC, GeoT): Tool to take the first steps to help determine which alternative finance tools are best suited to project needs.
- Toolbox for risk-evaluation and mitigation (VES, LPRC). Online spreadsheet containing the necessary parameters for project developers to perform an economic modelling of their geothermal projects.
- Information Catalogue for self-learning (LPRC): Wiki articles providing short definitions of common subjects related to CROWDTHERMAL within 4 different areas: alternative finance, risk mitigation, geothermal energy and social aspects.
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (All partners): Short definitions which summarise CROWDTHERMAL findings.
- Social media content generator (LPRC): Content generation for CROWDTHERMAL-related social media posts is facilitated by social media icons throughout the Wiki articles and the FAQ entries.
The Core Services are introduced in an animation video and a series of tutorials on the website:
https://www.youtube.com/@crowdthermalproject2703(se abrirá en una nueva ventana)The Core Services have been actively disseminated to different target audiences via a ‘European Deployment Campaign’ resulting in various expressions of interest from companies, organisations and public bodies which highlight the relevance and timeliness of the research performed and the service offering.
Finally, a set of recommendations for EU and national policy makers, as well as for local authorities and project developers were produced to enhance synergies with existing EU policies connected to the achievement of the European Green Deal while encouraging public engagement in this area.
