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Key takeaways:
Schoonschip won The smarter E AWARD 2026 for its floating residential energy community in Amsterdam
The project coordinates rooftop PV, battery storage, and heat pumps across 46 homes using a community energy management system
The integrated system reduces grid dependence while providing up to 80 kW of flexibility to the balancing market
The residents of Johan van Hasseltkanaal in northern Amsterdam have built a floating neighborhood of 46 homes that run on solar power. This sustainable residential community project has been awarded The smarter E AWARD 2026 under the Outstanding Projects category.
Known as Schoonschip, the neighborhood was developed over 10+ years and houses 144 residents. In addition to the solar panels, the project also uses battery storage systems, water-source heat pumps, and employs a community energy management system (CEMS). This extends the concept of a home energy management system (HEMS) by coordinating energy across multiple homes rather than a single residence.
The CEMS optimizes the use of energy generated by the 516 panels installed on individual rooftops and collectively reduces the amount of electricity that needs to be purchased. Each home has a battery pack, and all homes are networked with one another, sharing surplus energy among themselves. The community as a whole is connected to a power grid, which supports Schoonschip during the times of low solar generation and high consumption. The community is also connected to the day-ahead market, and price fluctuations are exploited to optimize the control of the storage and heat pumps. As a result, the neighborhood requires only about 1/3 of the grid capacity required by comparable homes.
In addition to optimizing self-consumption, the CEMS enables the community to provide up to 80 kW of flexibility to the balancing market. This means that by controlling the battery storage and heat pumps, the CEMS can increase or decrease the community’s net electricity demand or supply in response to grid conditions.
The jury of The smarter E AWARD 2026 praised Schoonschip for its elegant design, urban in-fill potential, environmental benefits, and measurable social value.
