Energiecooperatie Zuiderlicht, Southern Lights Energy Cooperative in English, is an Amsterdam-based energy cooperative (community) in the Netherlands. Founded in June 2013 by a group of Amsterdam residents, the cooperative had the mission to transition Amsterdam to sustainable energy within 15 years. The first members of the cooperative were Schinkel River houseboat residents interested in actively participating in the energy transition and reducing carbon emissions. They realized that they could, quite easily, install solar panels on houseboats, because of the flat roofs and roof ownership. For the most part, owners of apartments in Amsterdam did not own their roofs and consequently could not install their own solar panels.
Currently, Zuiderlicht boasts over 30 solar roof projects as well as wind turbine projects in collaboration with other energy cooperatives. It has partnerships with the municipality of Amsterdam, energy provider Greenchoice, Rabobank, and more. Its primary value proposition to members is ‘energy generation for everyone’.
In 2025, Aukje van Bezeij, the cooperative’s first active member, knew they were at a crossroads. With the approval of the new Energy act, energy sharing was finally legal in the Netherlands, however she and the rest of Zuiderlicht’s board did not know how to start energy sharing at scale within the confines of the new law.