Swedish legislation requires municipalities to produce an energy plan. Each municipal government is required to prepare and maintain a plan for the supply, distribution, and use of energy. Legislation also requires an assessment of the environmental impacts of any activities before implementation. Whether municipal energy plans have contributed to or preferably controlled the development of local energy systems has been a subject for debate. In the research project "Strategic Environmental Assessment of Local Energy Systems", financed by the Swedish Energy Agency, the municipal energy plan as a tool for developing local energy systems is studied. In this study, twelve municipal energy plans from Östergötland County in southern Sweden have been analysed. Different kinds of municipalities are represented in this county. The analysis has been based on a number of questions in different categories assessing energy system characteristics, environmental impact assessment and aims, the planning process, and goals for the plans. This report reviews the contents of all the energy plans in this first study. Strategisk miljöbedömning av lokala energisyste
