Slovakia plans to develop energy communities

<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Director of the Slovak Association of Sustainable Energy, Ján Karaba, told <b>pv magazine</b> solar is expected to become one of the key technologies used within future energy communities in Slovakia but said regulatory improvements will be essential to unlock the full potential of decentralized solar energy.</span></p><p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency (SIEA) and the Energy Communities Cluster of Slovakia (KEKS) have entered into an agreement to implement energy communities. </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">The two partners signed a memorandum of mutual support and cooperation that sets out a framework for long-term cooperation in the development of community energy.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">At the signing of the document, SIEA director general Michal Fiala said the two parties share a common goal on increasing the energy self-sufficiency of Slovak cities, municipalities and households.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We confirm our interest in creating incentive conditions that will lead to meaningful energy sharing,&#8221; Fiala said.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ján Karaba, director of the Slovak Association of Sustainable Energy (SAPI), told <strong>pv magazine</strong> that solar energy is expected to become one of the key technologies used within future energy communities in </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/region/slovakia/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Slovakia</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“In practice, community energy projects are likely to be built mainly around rooftop and local photovoltaic installations combined with battery storage, local consumption and electricity sharing,” Karaba explained.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">SAPI is considering the development of energy communities as a potential important new driver for Slovakia’s solar market, Karaba added. He said Slovakia has seen strong growth in distributed solar installations in recent years, particularly in the residential and small commercial segments, with almost 16,000 new photovoltaic installations connected last year. The country’s cumulative solar capacity surpassed </span><a href="https://www.pv-magazine.com/2026/03/24/slovakia-deploys-243-mw-of-solar-in-2025/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">1.3 GW</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> by the end of 2025.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, Karaba warned that Slovakia still significantly lags behind many EU countries in the practical deployment of energy communities.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He cited key barriers as regulatory complexity, insufficient practical know-how and the absence of simple implementation models for municipalities, apartment buildings and local businesses. He then advised that SAPI is cooperating with SIEA and KEKS on these matters.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“While these organizations focus strongly on awareness-building, education and practical support for local initiatives, SAPI’s main role is to help shape the legislative and regulatory framework for community energy in Slovakia,” Karaba said. “We have been actively involved in discussions around the implementation of renewable energy directive (RED) II and RED III, electricity sharing rules and proposals aimed at simplifying the operation of renewable energy communities and active consumers.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">SAPI proposed introducing the concept of a “community energy source” into Slovak legislation last year, in a bid to simplify electricity sharing and make community projects more economically viable.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">We believe that further regulatory improvements will be essential for unlocking the full potential of decentralized solar energy and local flexibility services in Slovakia,” Karaba added.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“If Slovakia manages to continue improving the legislative framework and accelerate implementation of EU energy market reforms, energy communities could significantly support future growth of decentralized solar energy, while helping to improve local energy self-sufficiency, public acceptance of renewables and overall flexibility of the electricity system.”</span></p>