Solar plant in Misano Adriatico generates bonus for employees

Solar panels on the roof of company headquarters generate a bonus in the pay packet. This is the renewable energy community model realised by Plangreen in Misano Adriatico (Rimini) that links a system created for energy sharing to corporate welfare. It all started with the relocation of Plangreen, which offers energy requalification services, to new premises. "We wanted to install a small photovoltaic system for our consumption, and we asked ourselves: why not make it by occupying the entire roof, thus larger, and with higher-performance panels?" says Paolo Pizzolante, president and CEO of Plangreen. The result is a 30 kW plant above the head and under the roof an energy community that self-consumes the energy produced and values the surplus for the benefit of employees. Pizzolante is excluded, by choice, from the energy community and the distribution of the bonus: 'It is something for the employees,' he repeats.

The story of Cer in Via dell'Industria starts with the rooftop installation, passes through the establishment of a non-profit association at the notary, and arrives at the application for certification at the Gse. However, it is not a linear journey: in the beginning, excess electricity was sold on the market, in the grid. No employee, with his or her domicile, was in fact within the area of the primary substation in which the community was registered, thus inhibiting access to the incentive. In fact, there is a geographical constraint for this: in a Cer the Pods (points of delivery: connection points to the national electricity grid) of all consumers and producers must be located in the area of the same primary electricity cabin. What to do?

The solution is right there, just look around: Specialisti del vivo is a company specialising in importing and marketing crustaceans and fish products for the catering industry. It is located next to Plangreen and given the type of business needs a lot of electricity to power the refrigeration systems that store live and frozen prawns, lobsters, langoustines, lobsters (but also fish, oysters and seafood). "They had a lot of consumption and little roof to put the panels on, but we had a lot of roof and little consumption," Pizzolante recalls. He then brings the Live Specialists into Cer. Its Pod respects the geographical condition and as a consumer it is able to activate the incentive as well as receive a portion of the electricity generated: "The community is now saturated. The system is 30 kW, we consume half of the power, the other half is available to them. The incentive generated is also split in half: 50 per cent goes to Specialisti del vivo, who will distribute it to their workers in the form of meal vouchers, so that it does not contribute to company profits, the other 50 per cent is distributed to the 10 Plangreen employees who set up Cer".

"The Gse accepted this set-up a couple of months ago," Pizzolante continues: "The incentive has started and we are expecting the first report at the end of this month. 4-5,000 euro per year will be distributed, which divided among everyone means 400 euro in each person's pocket. "It is also a way to make the employee participate in the economy of the company's system, to build loyalty, at a time when we are witnessing a great mobility of skills," emphasises the CEO. Not to mention that in the event of bill increases at home, the economic benefit from Cer would also increase, since it is linked to the market price of energy, in a sort of compensation.

If on 10 March 2023, when Plangreen's new headquarters were inaugurated, Environment Minister Gilberto Pichetto sent a letter to the company certifying the birth of the 'first energy community dedicated to corporate welfare', the time seems ripe for the next step: replicating the model: 'We are in an industrial zone, there are many realities that could benefit from this system,' Pizzolante concludes.