Energy. By sharing their surplus solar electricity, these neighbors save money and build social ties.

In the village of Jolimetz (North), on the edge of the large Mormal national forest where they have been settled for about thirty years, Florence and Vincent, recently retired from teaching, take care of a large garden that adjoins their residential area. Chickens, geese, beehives, orchard, vegetable garden: there is no shortage of things to do.

Two years ago, they decided to install eight solar panels. “With the increasing number of electrical uses to come, we might as well adapt now,” Vincent confides. Since the roof of their house had been redone a few years earlier, it was easier to place the sensors directly on the ground. With one major drawback: in France, the surplus electricity produced by a photovoltaic installation can only be sold to EDF if it is located high up. “The result: in the summer, when our panels were producing at full capacity, we didn’t know what to do with the surplus that was lost, especially since our personal consumption was quite moderate.”

A real sharing

Faced with such a waste, Vincent began researching and came across the trail of Amep (Associations for the mutualisation of local energy). A concept born in 2022 from the intuition of Christophe Brun and other residents, inspired by Amap in agriculture, which promote local consumption.

The principle: share locally produced energy in a free and supportive manner within a collective. The producer returns excess electricity produced to the network free of charge. The consumer receives it back in the form of a reduction on purchase.

The recipe is appealing. “Currently, there are a dozen active projects in France and around thirty others in preparation,” says Christophe Brun. Most of them are on a human scale, involving small groups of neighbors.

Some choose to join existing Amep projects. Others prefer to create their own local association to facilitate administrative procedures in particular. This is the choice made by Vincent and Florence. They embarked on the adventure with Marité and Hervé, long-time friends who live “just on the other side of the hedge”. The local association Électro’potes 59 was born*. “With our neighbours, it’s quite natural to share our surplus fruit and vegetables,” they say. “So why not share the electricity we have too much too?”

Instead of paying 0.21 euros per kilowatt hour, their neighbors now only pay 0.05 euros. Enough to make, each sunny month, a few dozen euros of appreciable savings. The financial gain is modest, but the operation allows them, for example, to recharge the engine of their heat pump at low cost. All this promotes social ties, mutual aid, especially among those who need it most.

The experience expands

This emerging Amep network is just one variation of the many collective energy self-consumption projects that have been multiplying in France in recent years. Thus, we have gone from 6 active projects in 2018 to 428 projects in May 2024, which can radiate up to 20 km around the production site. Around 5,000 consumers are concerned.

These initiatives are of increasing interest to local authorities, businesses and social landlords. The soaring price of fossil fuels is only accelerating the trend. While in most cases the interest of these collectives is above all to guarantee income stability, in the Amep, the primary objective is not financial but solidarity, the energy being given back free of charge. “In Dieulefit (Drôme), testifies Christophe Brun, the local Amep pays all of its electricity surplus to a neighbouring association which takes care of welcoming refugees.”

To facilitate the launch of other projects, one of the most involved members prepares a document bringing together all the steps to follow. Free sharing of experiences is also part of the adventure.

* Contact: [email protected]