The success of the energy transition will depend on the active role of citizens, local communities and small and medium-sized businesses, who will no longer be passive energy consumers but will become active investors and producers. However, there is a need for achieving further meaningful civil participation in these transitions that is inclusive of diverse socio-economic groups.

With a view to investigating the factors affecting energy citizenship, including the barriers obstructing the involvement of social groups that are underrepresented in the energy sector, the Center for the Study of Democracy and Applied Research and Communications Fund co-organised a round table discussion on the topic of “Energy Citizenship in Bulgaria: Independence and Energy Transition”.

In addition to the CSD and ARC team, the discussion featured Balin Balinov, Coordinator of “Energy Solutions” campaign at Greenpeace Bulgaria, Ivaylo Aleksiev, Executive Director of the Sustainable Energy Development Agency, Georgi Iliev, Mayer of Slatina District, Sofia Municipality, and Stanislav Andreev, Chief Engineer, Center for Energy Efficiency EnEffect.

The event featured a summary of the major results of a large-scale survey conducted in 19 European countries looking into the attitudes of citizens with regard to the opportunities for public participation in the energy transition, as well as key policy recommendations for achieving an effective energy citizenship in Bulgaria.

All speakers addressed the potential solutions to overcoming the current regulatory impediments and the creation of effective instruments for encouraging energy citizenship in Bulgaria. Removing administrative and regulatory barriers at the national and regional level is of fundamental importance to the transformation of citizens into active consumers and producers of energy from small-scale RES installations.