training to give citizens the keys to managing an energy cooperative

training to give citizens the keys to managing energy cooperatives

training to give citizens the key to managing an energy cooperative

citizens involved in local energy production

photovoltaic installations thanks to Centrales Villageoises citizens' collectives

citizen renewable energy projects already supported in France

Finaliste des Rencontres pour la Planète de 1% for the Planet

Giving citizens the power to produce their own energy

Centrales Villageoises

On March 20 and 21, 2026, the Centrales Villageoises network gathered in Brittany for its traditional Rendez-Vous de printemps. An eagerly-awaited highlight, each year bringing together local company members and network partners to exchange ideas, take a step back and collectively reboost.

This edition marked a turning point: for the first time, it was held outside its Alpine cradle, in a region where momentum is building. And the gamble paid off: over 100 participants made the trip, buoyed by the energy of the volunteers and the richness of the exchanges.

For two days, discussions, feedback and collective reflections nurtured the same ambition: to continue developing citizen renewable energy projects, despite a changing context. Inspiring initiatives showed that the network knows how to adapt, innovate and move forward.

The Annual General Meeting also consolidated this momentum, with renewed governance and strong mobilization to prepare for what's next.

This meeting confirms one thing: the network is very much alive, on the move, and determined to grow local energy solutions, driven by and for citizens - despite headwinds and a less favorable photovoltaic context.

The Centrales Villageoises reunite in Brittany!

Friday, November 7, the Association's Board of Directors met in Lyon to review the development of the Centrales Villageoises network, in a context marked by a year rich in challenges for citizen renewable energy projects.

Composed of some fifteen representatives of Centrales Villageoises and historical partners (AURA-EE, Fédération des PNR de France, Innovales), the Council first explored the possibility of strengthening solidarity within the network. Currently under consideration, this would involve setting up mechanisms for one-off financial support between Centrales Villageoises, in particular to support start-up projects or deal with exceptional situations.

The directors then defined the priorities that will guide the work of the salaried team in 2026. Among the themes identified as priorities: energy storage, decarbonized mobility, ground-mounted photovoltaics, support for the creation of salaried positions and the deployment of an ambitious communications plan. These choices reflect a desire to diversify beyond rooftop photovoltaics.

The afternoon was devoted to in-depth reflection on the future of the Centrales Villageoises model and the Association's role in the medium term. This work will continue over the coming months, and will be explored in greater depth at the network's annual meeting in March 2025.

Heading for 2026: Priorities and prospects for Village Power Plants

After several years devoted to the development of rooftop photovoltaic projects, Centrales Villageoises Lure Albion (CVLA), located in the PACA region, is now embarking on a project of a different kind: the creation of a ground photovoltaic park on the former landfill site in the commune of Banon. Established on a wasteland, this site will form the first link in a collective self-consumption loop, in which the electricity produced will be shared between communal buildings, businesses and citizens.

Patron support has enabled the association to enhance its skills in ground-mounted photovoltaics and develop, in 2025, a dedicated training module. This is designed to support the upskilling of project developers who have identified initial opportunities in their territories. More advanced, the Banon project has served as a pilot site, providing initial feedback and laying the foundations for the development of future similar projects within the network.

Soon, the first project for a small, grid-connected ground-mounted photovoltaic park will be up and running!

The Centrales Villageoises association organized a webinar presenting Centrales Villageoises on October 15, 2025!

It was divided into 4 parts:
1) to start with, a testimonial of a concrete project carried out by the Cévidorées Village Power Plants
2) then a step back on the history of the Village Power Plants, the charter and the reproducible model set up
3) a focus on the economic models of the projects, and on the legal structuring enabling citizen investment
4) and finally a list of the steps to be taken to launch the approach close to home!

So if you'd like to find out more about this model, the replay can be found right here: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hBSGJ7SrF0

Webinar presenting Village Power Plants

These days, it has to be said, the Association des Centrales Villageoises has sometimes felt like rowing against the tide. The political and legislative context surrounding photovoltaics and renewable energies is not always favorable, and staying the course requires a lot of energy and conviction.

So when Social Economy Europe, the European network for the social economy, decides to reward the Centrales Villageoises with the European Prize for the Social and Solidarity Economy (Clean Energy category), it's bound to have a special flavor.

The award was awarded in Murcia, Spain, during the European Social Economy Summit - a high point for the entire sector.
A European recognition that draws the spirits of all those - citizens, volunteers, communities, partners - who believe that another way of producing and sharing energy is possible.

A citizen model recognized in Europe

For over ten years, the Centrales Villageoises model has been based on the principles of the social and solidarity economy (SSE): democratic governance, local roots, collective utility and cooperation. Today, nearly 80 local companiesCentrales Villageoises in 10 French regions produce renewable, citizen-based energy, serving their territories.
This distinction follows on from the European Local Action for Energy Award (EUSEW Award) won last year, and confirms a growing recognition on a European scale. Centrales Villageoises are now identified as a key player in the citizen and solidarity-based energy transition.

Centrales Villageoises wins European Social Economy Award

Wednesday June 25, the Association des Centrales Villageoises took part in the Assises Européennes de la Transition Énergétique, speaking at the conference: "Renewable Energy Communities: from the European directive to concrete implementation in territories". 

This workshop highlighted the RECROSSES project, a French-Italian cooperation program funded by Interreg ALCOTRA, which aims to reduce carbon emissions in cross-border areas. 
Its objective: to support the creation of small and medium-sized renewable energy installations led by Communautés d'Énergie Renouvelable (CER). RECs enable local citizens, communities and businesses to come together to produce, consume and share their own energy on a local scale. 

In France, the Centrales Villageoises model, in operation for over ten years, perfectly embodies this European definition, now incorporated into French law. 

The RECROSSES project shows how a European legislative framework can become a reality on the ground. The concrete example: the birth in 2024 of the Centrales Villageoises Solely Brequin, a local cooperative created on the initiative of the Communauté de Communes Maurienne-Galibier. It brings together citizens, local authorities and socio-professional players around the development of photovoltaic installations and the production of local renewable energy. 

A powerful and inspiring moment, which drew a full house and illustrated all the potential of energy communities to accelerate the transition in territories!

The Centrales Villageoises at the Assises Européennes de la Transition Énergétique!

Dear Difteur-ses,

In the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence region of France, an unprecedented adventure was born in 2022: that of CV Durance Luberon, the first Centrale Villageoise to emerge not from a citizen's collective or a local authority... but on the initiative of a company.

At the crossroads between citizen involvement and entrepreneurial dynamics, this hybrid initiative opens up an original way to mobilize companies, communities and residents around the local energy transition.

Learn more about this initiative

A first within the network: a Village Power Plant created by a company...

Dear Difteur-ses,

The Centrales Villageoises network gathered in Lucinges, Haute-Savoie, for its annual flagship event.

This return to Rhone-Alpes land is highly symbolic: almost ten years after the first eight local companies were founded in the region, the network now boasts 76 nationwide. A remarkable growth that testifies to the dynamism and commitment of the players in the citizen energy transition.

On March 28 and 29, volunteers, partners and supporters gathered for the Rendez-Vous de Printemps des Centrales Villageoises. Over 200 participants attended, not counting the nearly 40 people who followed part of the online exchanges. 

For more information: https://www.centralesvillageoises.fr/actualite/les-centrales-villageoises-reunies-en-haute-savoie

A big thank you to for your support!

The Centrales Villageoises reunite in Haute Savoie!

Dear difteurs,

This is a first in the Centrales Villageoises network: 3 Savoyard Centrales Villageoises, EnergiCimes, Perle and Le Solaret, have decided to join forces to create a shared job. 

For more information: https://www.centralesvillageoises.fr/actualite/voyage-au-coeur-des-projets-episode-19

This experience is also intended to be inspirational for other collectives, who are looking to take a new step in their development and see shared employment as a solution for mutualizing resources, not just financial ones. It's an opportunity for the Centrales Villageoises to strengthen ties and collaboration, drawing on each other's strengths and skills.

This idea is carrying real enthusiasm among the three Savoyard collectives, who have welcomed their first employee in January 2025.

A big thank you to you, dear difteurs, for your invaluable support and donations ✨

A first job shared between Centrales Villageoises!

Dear difteurs,

We wish you a very happy new year 2025 ✨

Collective self-consumption, késako?

Collective self-consumption is a new energy model that enables local sharing of renewable energy between neighboring producers and consumers. In other words, it gives electricity producers, such as those with solar panels, the opportunity to distribute energy directly to nearby consumers.

On a technical level, nothing changes: producers and consumers remain connected to the power grid in the same way. But economically and socially, the impact is considerable! This approach offers a new way of consuming and producing electricity, more local and often more supportive. 
 
Projects across the Centrales Villageoises network 

The Centrales Villageoises network already hasseveral collective self-consumption operations in service, supplying communal buildings, craftsmen, shopkeepers and private individuals. There are five operations in service at the start of 2025, and more than a dozen in development, due to see the light of day later this year!

We'll keep you posted on progress! 
A big thank you to you, dear donors, for your invaluable support and donations ✨

Collective self-consumption, a fast-growing model within the Centrales Villageoises network

Dear difters,

On December 2, the day after COP29, the Association des Centrales Villageoises had the honor of speaking on the stage of the United Nations in Geneva. 
A powerful moment to highlight the engagement of citizens through the Centrales Villageoises, who are working to catalyze climate action and move away from "business as usual". 

This event aimed to show how citizens can be at the heart of climate action, and drive systemic change, whether through protest, political engagement or concrete actions, such as Centrales Villageoises, where citizens get directly involved by getting their hands dirty.

Find our intervention HERE from 1:15 (in English).

This intervention is part of a wider advocacy aimed at influencing climate policies to be as ambitious as possible in preparation for the submission of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) at the United Nations Climate Conference (COP 30). 
We are convinced that concrete actions, carried out at the local level, can catalyze global change for a more sustainable future.

A big thank you to you, dear difters, for your invaluable support and donations ✨

Village power plants at the United Nations (UN)!

It's possible to share free energy with low-income households!

The Centrales Villageoises du Trièves are taking another step forward in their fight against fuel poverty. After equipping precarious households with second-hand photovoltaic panels free of charge last January, the collective is launching a new experiment. The aim? To offer low-income households green, local and free energy. 

An innovative experiment: Solidarity Collective Self-Consumption

The collective, which brings together citizens, local authorities and businesses to carry out actions in favor of the energy transition, has taken a new step in its fight against fuel poverty. The local company is embarking on an innovative experiment: Autoconsommation Collective Solidaire (ACS).

This involves sharing the green electricity generated by the photovoltaic panels of private individuals who have no surplus valuation with precarious households, locally and free of charge.

In practical terms, when the electricity generated by photovoltaic panels exceeds consumption, the surplus energy is usually sold to the grid. Here, the idea is to distribute this surplus directly to neighboring families in fuel poverty through local solidarity loops.

3, 2, 1, go! 

The experiment will start in early summer with some 15 volunteer producers, for a total production of 30kWp. The surplus energy will benefit twenty families identified by the local social services and social economy companies. The aim is to reduce their electricity bills by €250 a year.

The Centrales Villageoises du Trièves launch an experiment to combat fuel poverty

Centrales Villageoises wins EUSEW Award
 
Tuesday June 11, Centrales Villageoises were announced winners of the European Local Action for Energy Award on the stage of the European Commission in Brussels.Handed over by the European Commissioner for Energy, the award recognizes sustainable energy initiatives by citizens' groups, local authorities and other stakeholders, who are working towards the transition to clean energy at local or community level. 

Citizen energy in the spotlight... 
 
The awards ceremony took place at the opening of European Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW Week), the biggest annual event dedicated to renewable energy in Europe.

This prestigious award is a true European recognition of the efforts made by all the citizens involved in Centrales Villageoises, as well as the local municipalities and businesses that support these initiatives. Well done to all! 

... And an opportunity to send out a strong message! 
 
This award was also an opportunity for the association to bring citizen energy to the forefront of the European stage, and to remind people how much European regulation on energy communities can be a real lever for citizen action if accompanied by support schemes.

Citizen energy enables citizens to take back ownership of their energy future, and Europe has a crucial role to play in facilitating this involvement! 

Centrales Villageoises wins European Local Action for Energy Award

The Centrales Villageoises association has been named a finalist in the prestigious European Sustainable Energy Awards 2024 (EUSEW Awards), in the "Local Action for Energy" category.

This award recognizes actions implemented in the field of sustainable energy, led by groups of citizens, local authorities, or other players, working towards the transition to clean energy on a local or community scale.

That sounds a bit like Centrales Villageoises, doesn't it? 

In fact, Centrales Villageoises are citizen-governed cooperative societies that run renewable energy and energy management projects on a local scale. Their ambition is to mobilize citizens, communities and local businesses to take concrete action in favor of the energy transition!

It's up to the public to decide the winner of this award, so if you'd like to support us, vote for us and share the information around you! 

Link to vote: https:/interactive.eusew.eu/awards/local-energy-action/empowering-citizens-for-renewable-energy-development-and-energy-sobriety

The EUSEW awards ceremony will take place during European Sustainable Energy Week from June 11 to 13, 2024, the largest annual event dedicated to renewable energy in Europe.

A great opportunity to present our model and salute the actions of Centrales Villageoises in the energy transition!

The Centrales Villageoises network finalist for the 2024 Sustainable Energy Prize

On March 15 and 16, over a hundred volunteers and partners gathered for the Steering Committee and the General Meeting of the Associationdes Centrales Villageoises. Not to mention the nearly 40 people who followed part of the event online!

Over two days, participants attended a series of workshops and plenary sessions on key network topics: collective self-consumption, ground-mounted photovoltaics and shading, local job creation and energy sobriety...

These discussions were a source of inspiration for the Centrales Villageoises volunteers, who went home even more determined to promote renewable energies in their territories! 

Village Power Plant Gathering

The year 2023 has been an exciting chapter for the Association des Centrales Villageoises.

Between its first participation in two European projects, recruiting new staff, establishing new partnerships, developing innovative tools, organizing meetings and holding multiple training courses, the association has undertaken numerous initiatives to spread the Centrales Villageoises model and support its volunteers.

The 28 pages of this report detail all these advances, with particular emphasis on projects carried out locally by the Centrales Villageoises.
We invite you to share it (without moderation!) to introduce the Centrales Villageoises approach to your neighbors, your friends, your family, your local elected officials and players in the energy transition, and to all the curious who would like to venture into the adventure of citizen energy! 

Download the 2023 activity report

Publication of the 2023 Business Report

After the pioneering Centrales Villageoises du Val de Quint project in 2020, the  Centrales Villageoises Energie Coeur de Corrèze are the second collective within the network to set up a collective self-consumption operation:
an innovative project that enables the commune of Naves to consume locally produced energy! 

Les  Centrales Villageoises Energie Coeur de Corrèze and collective self-consumption
 
Les Centrales Villageoises Energie Coeur de Corrèze is a citizen-owned renewable energy production collective set up as a société coopérative d'intérêt collectif (SCIC). Since their creation in 2021, the collective has been pursuing an ambitious project to produce and consume its own solar-generated electricity. This innovative solution reduces the cost of energy bills, while producing and sharing locally-produced green electricity. 

Two years after their creation, the Correze collective's project is taking shape with the implementation of a first collective self-consumption loop, built using resources provided by the Centrales Villageoises association. Since November 1, 2023, the 256 photovoltaic panels installed on the multi-purpose hall in the commune of Naves have been partly supplying the school complex, the stadium, the equestrian center and the town hall.

By sharing the energy produced by the photovoltaic power plant locally, the citizens' collective is strengthening local ties and raising awareness of renewable energies among local residents. With this innovative project, the Centrales Villageoises Energie Coeur de Corrèze are a fine example for the many neighboring communes!

A second collective self-consumption loop within the network!

The Association des Centrales Villageoises is recruiting a development and technical support officer to accompany the network's growth and strengthen the technical support provided to member collectives! The position also includes participation in the work of the two European projects supported by the association. 

It's partly thanks to your donations that we can recruit a new person, so many thanks for your support 🙏 

Download the job offer 

Don't hesitate to share this offer in your networks! Applications due by February 8, 2024. 

The Centrales Villageoises association is recruiting!

On October 16 and 17, 2023, the assises Ad'M EnR Citoyennes, co-organized by ADEME, Energie Partagée and AURA-EE, took place. This third edition, which took place in Lyon, aimed to highlight the many initiatives for the development of citizen energies around workshops, round tables and site visits. 
 The event illustrated the strong momentum of the Centrales Villageoises model in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, via site visits on day 1 and plenary and workshop presentations on day 2.
Learn more here.

Les Centrales Villageoises at the Assises des Energies Renouvelables Citoyennes!

For the second year running, the Centrales Villageoises association will be one of 40 environmental associations invited to come and "pitch" at the "Rencontres pour la Planète", organized on October 10 and 11 in Paris by 1% For the Planet.

The aim being both to increase awarenessof our initiatives, and to raise fundsvia contributions from patrons attending the event but also from the general public: as part of this, the association benefits from a crowdfunding campaign where donations are doubled by 1% For The Planetup to €3,000. Please help us reach this amount by sharing the campaign widely!

Link to crowdfunding with doubled donations!

The project presented by the association this year is geared towards the development of collective self-consumption within the network of Centrales Villageoises.

Link to the project page on the 1% for the Planet website (and psst: what's more, it was Captain Cause who made their page! 😉)

The Centrales Villageoises association selected for the Rencontres pour la Planète 2023!

From September, the Centrales Villageoises association will be taking part in a European LIFE program project. Entitled ECOEMPOWER, this project aims to set up or consolidate Europe-wide support structures for citizen renewable energy projects.

To find out more about the consortium of partners, the content of the project and the roles of the Association des Centrales Villageoises within it, click here!

A first participation in a European project for the Association des Centrales Villageoises

The Centrales Villageoises association organized a webinar presenting Centrales Villageoises on June 27, 2023. It was divided into 5 parts:
1)to start with, a testimonial of a concrete project carried out by the Centrales Villageoises Cévidorées 
2) then a step back on the history of the Centrales Villageoises, the charter and the reproducible model set up 
3) a focus on the economic models of the projects, and on the legal structure enabling citizen investment 
4) a testimonial from the PNR des Baronnies Provençales on the contribution of Centrales Villageoises to the territory 
5) and finally a list of steps to take to launch the approach close to home!

Webinar replay here !

The Centrales Villageoises network has just passed the Megawatt mark in installed capacity since the start of 2023!

⚡️ 17 new rooftop installations, with unit power ranging from 21 to 140 kWp, have been connected in the last four months, by 11 Centrales Villageoises companies: congratulations to Cevival - Centrales Villageoises des Vallons du Lyonnais, Centrales Villageoises Beewatt, SAS Cevidorées - Centrales Villageoises Beaujolais Pierres Dorées, EnergiCimes, Grési21, Centrales Villageoises Le Solaret Coeur de Savoie, NID'énergies, Centrales du Trièves, Vercorsoleil, Pl'Ain d'Energie and at Centrales Villageoises Sur le toit des Alpilles! 🎉

👉 For more figures, visit here

Already 1 MWp of power installed by 2023 by Centrales Villageoises!

The Centrales Villageoises association was delighted to receive the Mag2Lyon ESS Trophy for 2022 in the Climate category.
The awards ceremony took place on November 8, 2022. We take a look back at this award a few months later, as Mag2Lyon has just published a video presenting the Centrales Villageoises: a great insight into the work of the national association and the concrete implementation on a territorial scale!

Centrales Villageoises wins the Mag2Lyon ESS Trophy: the video!

The Centrales Villageoises association held its annual event in Saverne, Alsace, on March 24 and 25. 
A day of exchanges at the "Comité de Pilotage" on Friday 24, followed by a more formal moment with the association's General Meeting on Saturday 25.
A look back in pictures at this event, which brought together some sixty volunteers from the network's various collectives: https://www.centralesvillageoises.fr/actualite/retour-sur-le-copil-et-lassemblee-generale-de-lassociation.

Annual meeting of the Centrales Villageoises network in Saverne

👉 The 2022 activity report from the Association des Centrales Villageoises is online! To be found here !

📖 28 pages to give you a complete and up-to-date portrait of our beautiful network: its successes, its difficulties, its key figures and its outlook for the future...

Let's keep one figure in mind to illustrate the rise of our network: the production of renewable and local electricity by Centrales Villageoises increased by 50% in 2022 compared to 2021! For more figures and information, visit here.

Good reading!

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