Autonomy as empowerment: A taxonomic framework for analyzing energy autonomy in local flexibility markets

Decentralized energy management in energy systems has led to the rise of the Local Flexibility Market (LFM). This market enables active prosumer participation at local levels, facilitating distributed flexibility resources and grid optimization. At its core, the LFM’s fundamental value resides in enabling energy autonomy, enabling prosumers to actively manage and exchange their flexibile resources. However, the concept of energy autonomy remains rooted in outdated notions of passive consumption and self-sufficiency. This traditional understanding hinders the full potential of these developments. Therefore, modern energy systems face a fundamental challenge: an outdated understanding of autonomy. The lack of a standardized contemporary definition of energy autonomy impedes effective comparison, selection, and regulation of autonomous solutions. To address this challenge, this paper develops a comprehensive framework with two key elements: a redefinition of energy autonomy and a multidimensional taxonomy for standardization. The focus is on the LFM, as this market leads the way in local energy trading and prosumer engagement. The framework serves as a tool to examine four key areas: communication, control, physical infrastructure, and learning. Through novel terminology and tailored metrics, it provides the structure to evaluate autonomy across market structures while accounting for their varying complexity and participant interactions. The framework was validated through an analysis of four leading LFM projects. This evaluation identified four key barriers to market development. First, regulatory frameworks suffer from ambiguous language. Second, current investment priorities remain narrowly focused. Third, automated systems lack sufficient explainability. Fourth, market access continues to limit aggregator participation. Accordingly, this work’s contribution is a transformative understanding of modern energy autonomy paradigms. These insights support decision-making in policy development, market design, and regulatory framework.