European Commission seeks to involve households more actively in the energy transition

At the end of April, the European Commission presented a new set of recommendations known as the Citizens Energy Package, a package of measures focused on citizens and households in the energy transition. The aim is not only to further support renewable energy sources, but above all to bring the tangible benefits of the transition to end customers: lower bills, better protection against disconnection, clearer contracts, greater opportunities for self-generation of electricity, and household participation in power system flexibility. The package follows an earlier Commission communication from March 2026 and the EU's broader affordable energy policy.

The package is built around four recommendations. The first concerns protecting vulnerable customers from energy supply disconnection and addressing the situation of households during the gradual phase-out of natural gas. The Commission recommends early identification of at-risk households, individual repayment plans, debt advice, energy vouchers and structural measures such as building renovations, energy savings and access to renewable energy sources.

It also stresses the role of so-called one-stop shops, single contact points intended to help households navigate the technical, financial and administrative options for switching to cleaner heating sources.

Electricity and gas suppliers

The second recommendation focuses on the retail electricity and gas market. The Commission wants to standardise key contractual terms and conditions so that consumers can compare suppliers' offers more easily, switch contracts more quickly and avoid non-transparent products.

The third recommendation responds to the risk of supplier failures, which emerged as a major source of uncertainty during the energy crisis. National regulators are expected to more rigorously oversee risk management at energy traders so that any supplier failure is not passed on to household bills or the security of supply.

Energy communities  and self-consumption

The fourth pillar of the package concerns energy communities and self-consumption. The Commission wants to remove the technical, regulatory and financial barriers preventing citizens, municipalities and small businesses from jointly producing, sharing and consuming renewable energy.

The accompanying action plan sets a target of increasing the installed renewable energy capacity of energy communities to as much as 90 GW. The plan focuses on five areas: effective national frameworks, access to financing, awareness-raising, social inclusion and the digital integration of communities into the energy system.

The importance of the package must be seen in the context of persistent energy poverty. According to Eurostat, in 2024, 9.2 % of the EU population were unable to keep their homes adequately warm, although this represented an improvement from 2023, when the share was 10.6 %. The Commission also notes that more than 30 million Europeans struggle to pay their energy bills on time and that household electricity prices remain above pre-crisis levels.

Implications for the Czech Republic

For the Czech Republic, the package has several practical implications. First, it increases pressure to link social policy, building renovations and energy policy. Protecting vulnerable households cannot rely solely on short-term price compensation, but will need to be tied to energy savings, replacement of inefficient heating sources and accessible advice.

Second, the quality of the retail market will be important: clear contracts, comparable offers and fair conditions for switching suppliers. Third, the importance of local energy projects will grow – from municipal photovoltaics and apartment buildings to energy communities that can combine generation, sharing, storage and demand management.