Summary case study report The sonnenCommunity

This case study report provides a short summary of a full case study report on the sonnenCommunity, a virtual energy community launched in 2016 by a German producer of smart home storage systems. The full case study was guided by 14 research questions, across four themes. This summary document focuses on the emergence and operation of the sonnenCommunity, showing how it creates and delivers different types of value to citizens, consumers, and energy systems, as a business model. It concludes with a brief discussion of the potential for the sonnenCommunity to grow or to be copied in new contexts. It presents – in a highly reduced format – the interpretation of the researchers. It does not necessarily reflect the opinion of those involved in its development and operation. Any factual errors remain the responsibility of the authors.