All RESS and ORESS projects must register themselves and their corresponding Community Benefit Funds on the SEAI Community Benefit Fund National Register. These funds will ensure that RESS projects support sustainable community initiatives and help empower communities to support local causes.

About the Community Benefit Fund

A key feature of the Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS) is that all renewable electricity generation projects must establish a Community Benefit Fund to be used for the wider economic, environmental, social and cultural well-being of the local community.

The contribution is to be set at €2 per Megawatt hour of generation of the RESS Project. This means there are real and quantifiable funds being made available annually for the benefit of the local community. The Fund will be aligned to incentivise investment in local renewable energy, energy efficiency measures and climate action initiatives.The community benefit funds under RESS-1 will deliver approximately €4.5million a year to sustainable community initiatives targeted at those communities living in close proximity to the RESS-1 Projects.

 

Read about community benefit funds for developers

Read about community benefit funds for communities

 

About the Community Benefit Fund National Register

The National Register consists of two parts; a portal for energy generators and community benefit funds to register their projects and log report data and a website designed to showcase the data from that portal to the public through interactive maps, dashboards, and case studies. 

Click here to launch the Community Benefit Fund National Register

Case Studies

The Community Benefit Fund National Register will showcase innovative community projects funded by community benefit funds across the country. The below case studies are examples of community projects funded by non-RESS renewable energy projects.