Municipal elections 2026:3 levers for your energy transition

As the 2026 municipal elections approach, one figure is striking: 87% of French people say that the energy transition will influence their vote. However, on the ground, the subject is struggling to establish itself as a central campaign theme.

How can we explain this paradox, when 92% of mayors say they are acting? Why is energy still being politically underexploited?

The answer is in one word: invisibility. Local energy action is perceived as technical, expensive and complex. It is also suffering from an unprecedented reduction in the resources of municipalities.

However, this constraint can become a political and financial opportunity. Well-managed, the energy strategy becomes a powerful tool at the service of the territory.

How to make the energy transition a solid pillar of the future mandate? Here are three levers to activate right now.

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1.Lever 1: breaking the invisibility of local energy action

The problem of energy transition Local is not not inaction.

It's invisibility.

59% of citizens say they are unaware of the actions of their town hall in the area of energy. And for good reason: you can't see how to insulate an attic or replace a boiler room.

As the 2026 municipal elections approach, the challenge is no longer just to act.

It is necessary to structure and make visible territorial energy action, by combining in-depth work and immediately perceptible initiatives.

1.1 Energy audit: the starting point for effective planning

Before promising, you have to know.

Schools, town halls, gymnasiums, heritage buildings, village halls...: in many municipalities, the built heritage is ancient, heterogeneous, and sometimes poorly documented.

The energy audit of buildings is the The basis of a credible territorial energy strategy. This precise photograph of the existing makes it possible to:

• Identify the most energy-consuming public buildings.
• Prioritize emergencies.
• Prioritize investments in a long-term logic.
• Estimate energy and financial gains.
• Measure progress through a reference point.

The objective: to move from reactive management “piecemeal” to a structured multi-year trajectory.

The energy audit then becomes a budgetary and environmental planning tool.

1.2 The Tertiary Decree: transforming an obligation into a strategic direction

Often perceived as a constraint, the Tertiary decree requires a gradual reduction in the energy consumption of tertiary buildings of more than 1,000 m².

First deadline: - 40% by 2030.

This obligation sets a numerical, dated and measurable trajectory. In other words: a cap. Instead of being subject to regulation, A municipality can take over it for :

• Formalize a multi-year action plan, integrating sobriety, energy efficiency and renewable energies.
• Communicate on concrete objectives and results.
• Demonstrate its ability to anticipate.

The Tertiary Decree offers an opportunity to preserve the municipal budget.
Reducing consumption reduces bills. It also limits exposure to the volatility of energy prices.

1.3 Public lighting: showing visible and immediate results

Public lighting is the second largest energy source in municipalities after buildings. On average, it represents 37 to 41% of their electricity consumption.

It is also one of the positions where the results are the most visible.

Switching to LED, intensity modulation, intelligent night off and presence detection have immediate effects :

• Of energy savings from 50 to 80%.
• One significant drop in bills (ROI over 2 to 3 years): ADEME estimates this decrease at 35%.
• One quality improvement of the lighting.
• One reduction of light pollution.

Renovating public lighting sends a clear signal. The municipality's commitment to the energy transition is becoming visible, measurable and concrete.

1.4 Solarizing public roofs: the energy transition that can be seen

Installing photovoltaic panels on schools, car parks and administrative buildings transforms public facilities into evidence of environmental exemplarity.

Renewable energies combine numerous advantages:

• Local production of electricity.
• Immediate reduction in the bill Energetic via self-consumption. Securing part of the costs over the long term.
• Decrease incarbon footprint.

Beyond financial benefits, a solar roof is a strong political marker. Visible, it embodies the commitment of the municipality and reflects a responsible image.

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2.Lever 2: financing municipal energy policy without increasing taxes

The first obstacle to the local energy transition is often financial. Raising property taxes is politically risky and socially sensitive.

But it is today possible to finance the transition without additional fiscal pressure.

Solutions to control public spending? Maximize aid, optimize the purchase of energy and negotiate effective partnerships.

2.1 Energy Saving Certificates: securing major funding

Les Energy Saving Certificates (CEE) are one of the main levers for financing energy efficiency.

Insulation of public buildings, modernization of heating systems, energy renovation: many actions are eligible for significant aids. But this device is technical and complex.

Without support, a municipality may under-exploit EECs.

One energy saving consultant helps with:

• Identify eligible transactions.
• Maximize the amounts that can be mobilized.
• Secure administrative files.
• Integrate EECs into a global financing plan, in addition to other aids (Green Fund, FEDER, Heat Fund, etc.)

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2.2 Purchasing energy: optimizing contracts to generate savings

The purchase of energy is a savings driver that is often underestimated. However, an adapted purchasing strategy can generate financial leeway from the first year.

Contractual choices directly influence spending of the municipality. Several options for purchasing energy exist:

• Fixed price to secure the municipal budget.
• Price indexed to take advantage of market declines.
• Hybrid strategy combining security and flexibility.
• Group or shared purchases to benefit from the volume effect.

Arbitrating between these options requires detailed market analysis and risk forecasting. Well controlled, the purchase of energy:

• Smooth and secure energy expenditure.
• Avoid shocks budgetary.
• Strengthens financial visibility to plan investments.

The energy then becomes a management tool, and no longer a variable experienced.

2.3 Partnerships: limiting direct public investment

The energy transition opens the way to new models of cooperation.

For a long time, the alliance with the private sector has long aroused distrust. Today, 77% of mayors are open to public-private partnerships (PPPs) and third party financing.

The principle is simple: sharing or transferring financial risk to a partner. Numerous montages exist:

• Public-Private Partnerships (PPP)
• Mixed economy companies (SEM)
• Local Public Companies (SPL)
• Energy performance contract (CPE)
• Partnership with departmental energy unions
• Citizen energy projects.

These devices make it possible to:

• Limit initial investment.
• Preserving debt capacity of the municipality.
• Accelerate implementation energy transition projects.
• Ensuring performance energetic.

The challenge for the elected official is not to delegate blindly, but to build a balanced partnership in the service of the general interest.

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3. Lever 3: from the city manager to the town hall leading the energy transition

For a long time, local energy policy was reduced to a succession of works triggered by the emergency. To convince in 2026, this logic is no longer enough. It's no longer just about renovating buildings. Managing the energy transition is becoming essential.

3.1 Heating networks: sharing to reduce costs

Heat networks embody this change of scale. More than 1,000 networks are operating today in France, the majority of which are initiated by local authorities.

Rather than equipping each building individually, these networks pool heat production and distribution at the scale of a neighborhood. The same network can supply public buildings and collective housing. It is based on local renewable sources, adapted to the territory:

• Biomass.
• Geothermal energy.
• Recovered waste.
• Waste heat recovery, within a winning alliance with companies and business areas (factories, data centers, etc.)

The interest is threefold:

• Mutualize The investments and cut costs.
• Stabilize expenses energy thanks to less volatile sources.
• Reducing the carbon footprint heating.

Heating networks thus become a tool for land use planning and economic attractiveness.

3.2 Energy data: measuring to manage effectively

You only pilot well what you measure.

Today, municipalities have a lot of data: invoices, meter readings, consumption per building, use and period. But this information is often scattered, poorly exploited and rarely consolidated.

Centralized and analyzed, they become a powerful decision support tool.

Energy management allows:

• One real-time tracking consumptions.
• One automatic and rapid detection anomalies (leak, heating stayed on at the weekend in a school)
• One optimization settings and uses.
• One rollback daily consumption.
• One prioritization investments.
• One Objective measure of earnings after work.

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The energy transition is becoming legible and verifiable.

This is precisely the mission of Pilott, an energy management platform, developed, hosted and supported in France by Sirenergies.

With Pilott, you track and centralize your energy data in a single management platform, without multiplying dashboards.

Clear, up-to-date dashboards transform decision-making. It is no longer intuitive or responsive.
Thanks to data, the territorial energy strategy is based on reliable, measurable and shared indicators.

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3.3 Energy management: a political and democratic tool for the municipality

Energy management is not only technical. It is a political lever and an instrument of democratic transparency.

Thanks to energy management, the municipality can commit to concrete goals.

She can also demonstrate your successes thanks to an indisputable numerical balance sheet:

• “This is our reduction trajectory”
• “Here are the savings”
• “Here's the fiscal and environmental impact.”

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4. Conclusion

Energy is a central electoral issue.

Beyond the environmental dimension, it influences:

• The control of public spending
• The attractiveness of the territory
• the performance of communal action.

Structured, intelligently financed and driven by data, it ceases to be a simple expense item. It becomes a strategic lever at the service of the territorial project.

Voters no longer expect intentions. They are waiting for results. For elected officials, energy policy is a demonstration of their capacity for responsible, proactive and future-oriented management.

Elected, is your municipal budget under pressure?

Discover our solutions for financing the energy transition without increasing local taxation.

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