Viable Cities is now publishing a new report that highlights how local energy systems can become a key building block in the climate-neutral cities of the future. The report, EnergyNet and the Future of Local Energy Systems, describes EnergyNet as a potential system architecture for a more robust, cost-effective, and flexible energy system—where local production, storage, flexibility, and digital coordination are designed as a cohesive system.
The article places these developments in a broader context and shows how electrification, digitalization, and increasing demands for resilience are changing the role of energy systems in cities. Local energy systems can reduce vulnerability to price fluctuations and capacity shortages, contribute to faster electrification, and create new opportunities for households, property owners, and local communities to actively participate in the energy transition.
EnergyNet was developed as part of the system demonstrator project in Lund, where solutions are tested in real neighborhoods through close collaboration between the municipality, property owners, energy companies, business research organizations. The experiences gained there demonstrate how local systems can complement existing infrastructure while enhancing both resilience and cost-effectiveness.
The report also highlights policy and financing issues related to local energy systems and points to the need for open standards, interoperability, and long-term system governance to enable large-scale implementation in Europe.
The topic will be discussed further when Jonas Birgersson and Göran Persson take the stage at Transition Lab Forum Live on March 25, where the focus will be on how cities can play a more active role in the development of the energy systems of the future.
