POCITYF

The Horizon Europe project POCITYF is about "positive energy districts" (PEDs), where buildings, networks, inhabitants and e-mobility are cleverly linked together to achieve more sustainable cities. The role of the law school, and specifically researcher Ceciel Nieuwenhout, is to examine the legal framework of the various energy solutions being implemented within the project. The bottom line is that the legal framework creates several barriers to the implementation of PEDs. Nieuwenhout identified these and further explored possible solutions to those barriers.

The project consists of a large number of partners from different European countries and cities: two cities, Alkmaar (NL) and Evora (Portugal) have been chosen as "lighthouse cities" that are trying out many of the solutions and investigating the impact. Six other citie (Bari, Celje, Granada, Hvidovre, Ioannina and Ujpes) are involved as following cities and are implementing portions of the solutions emerging in the lighthouse cities.

Within the project, the RUG has delivered deliverable 1.3 "Building and Grid Retrofit Regulatory Framework" with an analysis of the international, European and national legal framework for this. In addition, several academic publications are still in preparation. The UG organized a symposium on the energy-positive built environment in July 2024, where more than 40 participants considered various aspects of energy transition in the built environment.

Duration of the project

2020 – 2024

Awarded grant

19,998,275 euros (of which 201,250 euros for the RUG), obtained from Horizon Europe

Contact persons at our Faculty

Mr. C.T. (Ceciel) Nieuwenhout
Drs. A.M. (Alma) Erenstein

Websites with additional information