**3. Analysis of Collected Data**

*3.1. Characteristics of CRE Projects in Thailand*

3.1.1. Detail of Community Energy Groups and Projects

The 26 pilot CRE projects are located in 15 provinces across Thailand, as shown in Figure 1. Overall, most CRE projects are in the northern and southern parts of the country. This is mostly due to the strong network support from academic institutions in the areas. Few projects are located in the central, eastern, and northeastern regions. It seems that CRE's network support from an academic institution strongly affects the number of CRE projects implemented in an area. The average networking of CRE was 1.15 partners per project.

brainstorming with the help of all the participants.

**Figure 1.** Map showing the geological location of the 26 CRE projects in Thailand: Adapted from [34].

Figure 2a shows the energy generation activities of the 26 CRE projects. Biogas thermal and solar thermal technologies are the most commonly installed technologies due to the fitting of their thermal demand with cost-effectiveness. Most of the CRE projects are implemented in agricultural communities. Thermal energy is needed for agronomic activities. Few projects are involved in electricity generation mostly because of communal accesses to the national grid. CRE that generates electricity is only located in an off-grid area or regions with unstable electricity supply.

**Figure 2.** Detail of community energy projects: (**a**) Energy generation activities and (**b**) group types of the 26 CRE projects.

Figure 2b shows the types of legal entities that implemented the CRE projects in Thailand. All the CRE projects had a formal structure before implementing the project. We found that the origin of most of the groups is rooted in civil society. The legal entities of the CRE projects were established and invested by local people and existing groups coming together.

#### 3.1.2. Objectives of CRE Projects

Figure 3 shows the objectives of CRE project development. Three groups are categorized according to aims: economic, environmental, and social. The most common goal was saving money on energy bills, accounting for 85% of the groups. For example, biogas projects used gas to substitute LPG or wood for cooking or agricultural activities. The second common goal was improving the local environment, accounting for 50%. For instance, biogas projects focused on reducing odor pollution and underground water contamination in the area. As regards the third objective, 31% implemented CRE for education in the community. In brief, the economic and environmental dimensions are the main objectives for implementing CRE.

**Figure 3.** Objectives of Thai CRE groups.
