Sustainable transcalar design of energy communities by a multi-criteria tool. Supporting renewables in the Med area

To achieve the energy transition, it is fundamental to maximise efficiency of renewables production and distribution systems. However, in distinctive contexts as the Mediterranean one, the design of such systems should also consider the preservation of landscape and cultural features. The contribution focuses on the PANORAMA project, devised to steer the renewable energy communities planning towards consistency with the territory in cultural, environmental and landscape terms. The paper describes the logical structure of a multi-criteria tool that, with a transcalar approach, simultaneously considers three different dimensions: (i) renewable energy production potentials of different locations; (ii) technical-economic feasibility, including energy storage options; (iii) level of landscape and cultural integration of renewables bearing in mind the system’s characteristics and location. This approach allows to support the implementation of renewable systems also in geographical areas where it is important to guarantee a socially fair use of natural resources, and the preservation of cultural aspects.