Project summary:

Europe wants to lead the clean energy transition, committed to cut CO2 emissions by at least 40% by 2030. The new regulatory framework includes an energy efficiency target for the EU for 2030 of 32.5% with an upwards revision clause by 2023. A successful clean energy transition requires citizens to take ownership, to benefit from new technologies and to participate actively in the market. In addition, a transition should ensure that vulnerable consumers are protected from energy poverty, a situation that According to the Energy Poverty Observatory, affects more than 50 million households in the EU The EC wants to help consumers to embrace this transition by helping them with everyday operations like billing and changing suppliers. The EU supports MS to reduce consumers’ energy costs, monitor and report when energy poverty cases are detected. There is a large range of solutions to help consumers to reduce their energy demand, the energy billing, the carbon emissions and thus energy poverty.

In this context, a project team has been set up to design Energy Consumer Empowerment Training (TRECE). This training addresses energy poverty by actively involving citizens and social stakeholders in the planning and development of their solutions, as well as tailoring information to the target group.

Project objectives are: 

• Create a training program to for social agents and public authorities, to be addressed to a vulnerable sector such people in energy poverty situation, 

• Provide these entities several tools to detect energy poverty cases in the population, such the analysis of consumption patterns,
• Reduce the energy poverty of the population by improving the understanding of their energy consumption and presenting them with solutions, all thanks to the training that will be given to the intermediate agents who will be able to facilitate these changes in habits, 
• Change the energy consumers behaviour to increase the energy efficiency of their houses, 
• Empower the final private consumers towards the decision to improve their energy efficiency and to foster the purchase of Renewable Energies via the different energy suppliers, 
• Reduce energy consumption and thus CO2 emissions training based on a MOOC that social agents and public authorities can easily disseminate through the target groups, taking a approach of training for trainers.

Main project activities:

1. A first assesment of energy consumers and trainers needs’, which will lead to an strategy for the training development 
2. The development of the training programme: which facilitates the empowerment of energy consumers and behavioural change. 
3. The development of a Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) for several social agents such NGOs and municipalities to tackle energy poverty.

RESULTS, IMPACT and LONG TERM BENEFITS:

• New tools for social agents, NGOs, municipalities and energy agencies to detect and tackle energy poverty, 
• Creation of a training program to address energy consumers’ needs, 
• Reduction of the energy bill of these consumers, 
• Detect the main points of energy losses, 
• Improvement of the learning methods through innovative training matter.