Programme

Launch investments in sustainable energy

To accelerate public investment in energy:

• Investments in energy efficiency in public lighting in 65 municipalities, with an associated investment of €6.48 million.
• Investments in energy efficiency in 85 municipal buildings in 50 municipalities (replacing diesel/LPG boilers with biomass boilers), with an associated investment of €9.40 million and other smaller investments in energy efficiency.

Strengthen innovative organisational models

To pool investment in sustainable energy into packs which are easier to fund and to simplify the legal and technical aspects of administrative procedures:

• Mechanisms for securing pooled investments.
• Ensure that the specific studies commissioned meet technical content requirements.
• Obtain feedback on the continuous improvement process.
• Create tendering models.

Establish and promote a new financing system

Test the viability of new financing systems in the province of Girona through contracts with energy service companies (ESCO), micro, small and medium energy service companies (SME-MESCO), pooling small and medium investments in different municipalities in the Girona region:

• Provide funding for BEenerGi projects to ensure their final implementation.
• Promote ESCO contracts in Girona’s municipalities.
• Create new financing models (contracts with small energy service companies SME-MESCO).

Develop capacities

To train all the key stakeholders and ultimate beneficiaries (capacity-building for 180 people). The bulk of the efforts will focus on local small and medium-sized companies in the energy sector (local maintenance firms, local energy suppliers, etc.) to turn them into micro energy service companies (MESCO).

Provide access to data on energy consumption

Making data on energy consumption in 85 municipal buildings and electricity used by public lighting in more than 65 municipalities available to all interested parties.

Communicate and disseminate the results throughout Europe

Through potential replicators.

Contribute to achieving the European 2020 targets

197 municipalities in the province of Girona (89.19% of the municipalities) have signed the Covenant of Mayors and committed themselves to helping reduce the European Union’s CO2 emissions by at least 20% by the year 2020.

Improve municipal finances through energy savings

Making energy savings will help to reduce municipalities’ current expenses, thus allowing them to make investments elsewhere or at least to reduce their debts.

Establish a new model of multilevel governance among local authorities

Pooling investments in sustainable energy promotes economies of scale and simplifies administrative procedures. These new governance models can be replicated by other local authorities and exported to other sectors (green public procurement).

Create green jobs

Boost companies’ competitiveness and the skills and capacities of their current and future workforce in the area of renewable energies and energy efficiency in the province of Girona by leveraging local micro energy service companies (MESCO). More than 132 jobs will be created thanks to the BEenerGi programme.

Reduce the risk of forest fires

67.50% of Girona’s surface area is covered by forests. The biomass boilers installed in municipal buildings will use local biomass fuel from municipal and private forests. The BEenerGi programme mobilises the local biomass market and encourages the management of 2,821.5 hectares of Girona’s forests.