Conference Programme
Keynote Speakers
Henrik Lund gave the 10th anniversary keynote speech on New insights into Smart Energy Systems – Theory, Concepts and Applications
Henrik Lund is MSc Eng and Professor in Energy Planning at Aalborg University, Denmark. He holds a PhD in the Implementation of Sustainable Energy Systems (1990), and a Dr Techn in Choice Awareness and Renewable Energy Systems (2009). Henrik Lund is a highly ranked world-leading researcher. For 10 successive years, he is listed among ISI Highly Cited researchers, ranking him among the top 1% researchers in the world within engineering, and is on the Stanford list of top 2% scientists. He is member of The Danish Academy of Technical Sciences (ATV) and has been awarded the Royal Order of Chivalry of the Dannebrog. For 15 years, Henrik Lund has been Editor-in-Chief of Elsevier’s high-impact journal Energy with annual 15000+ submissions, and is the founding editor of the journal Smart Energy. He is the author of more than 500 books and articles including the book ”Renewable Energy Systems”. He is the architect behind the advanced energy system analysis software EnergyPLAN, which is a freeware used worldwide that have formed the basis of more than 300 peer-reviewed journal papers around the world.
Raymond Decorvet gave the keynote speech 21st Century – The age of the mega heat pumps
Raymond Decorvet oversees Global Business Development of Heat Pumps and Power Storage ETES at MAN Energy Solutions in Zurich. His role is integral to the company’s dedication to advancing sustainable heating solutions and decarbonization strategies. Decorvet’s knowledge in innovative technologies and his ability to foster networking and collaboration strongly supports MAN Energy Solutions’ shift towards sustainable energy solutions. With his support, the company has embarked on pivotal projects in Esbjerg and Aalborg, Denmark. Here, the deployment of high-capacity sea water heat pumps marks a milestone in integrating the heat pump business into the company’s decarbonization strategy; “Moving big things to zero.” His prior experience in the computer industry, including various leadership roles at ABB’s Data Center business, has enriched his broad skill set and strategic approach to business development. Decorvet possesses an academic background in general management and economics.
Vera van Zoest gave the keynote speech Energy security in Europe: are we at risk?
Dr. Vera van Zoest is assistant professor at the Swedish Defence University focusing on modelling and simulation of critical infrastructures. She has a background in spatio-temporal statistics, data analysis and machine learning, with interests in method development, energy crisis resilience and energy security. Currently, she leads the “Resilient Electricity Supply in Sweden: Towards a National Crisis Energy system” (RESISTANCE) project funded by the Swedish Energy Agency. This project focuses on energy system resilience through a socio-technical approach, by on the one hand modelling and simulation of vulnerabilities in the electricity network, and on the other hand, studying the behavior of people in times of an energy crisis. Her previous project, predicting the effects of the pandemic on electricity consumption patterns using a large dataset of smart energy meters, also funded by the Swedish Energy Agency, has been listed in IVA’s 100-list 2023, highlighting projects which are deemed to have a high societal impact. She is affiliated researcher at Uppsala University and member of the interdisciplinary Uppsala Smart Energy Research (USER) group.
Francesco Sassi gave the keynote speech The looming tensions between energy security and transition in the post EU-Russia energy order
Francesco Sassi (Ph.D.) is a research fellow with the energy security unit of the Italian Parliament and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. He holds a Ph.D. (with honour) in Geopolitics – Political Science at the University of Pisa. Francesco’s research has been published in several international peer-reviewed journals and book chapters related to the study of energy geopolitics and the interactions between government actors and market-based ones in highly politicised contexts. His main analytical interests are energy geopolitics dynamics in Eurasia, China and Russia energy diplomacy and security strategies, the political and economic effects of the globalisation of the natural gas market, the state-market-companies nexus in the energy field and the power relationship in energy interdependencies. Also, Francesco is a consultant and research fellow at RIE – Ricerche Industriali ed Energetiche, where he works on the implications of energy security and diplomacy strategies on investment trends and global energy scenarios. He is also the coordinator of the energy geopolitics programme at RivistaEnergia.it, the online magazine of ENERGIA, the main Italian quarterly publication on energy policy and economy.
Jyoti K. Parikh gave the keynote speech Relevance of Hydrogen for India
Professor, Dr Jyoti K. Parikh, Executive Director of Integrated Research and Action for Development (IRADe), was a member of the former Prime Minister’s Council on Climate Change, India, and is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to IPCC authors in 2007. She has participated on global platforms such as the Global Commission on Adaptation set up by the UN Secretary-General, the advisory group “Friends of COP26, and the Global Agenda on Decarbonization of the Energy Sector of the World Economic Forum. Dr Parikh was invited as a Global Leadership Fellow by the School of Global Policy Studies of The University California, San Diego. She has served as an energy consultant to the World Bank, the US Department of Energy, the European Commission, and UN agencies such as UNIDO, FAO, UNU, and UNESCO, and as an environment consultant to UNDP, World Bank and UNEP. She has served in a number of international advisory panels and as an advisor to various ministries for the Government of India. She was in the Board of directors of the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd (IREDA) 2001-2004 and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). Dr Parikh is the author of more than 250 publications, including 28 books.
Xiliang Zhang gave the keynote speech The role of hydrogen energy in achieving China’s carbon neutral goal
Dr. Zhang Xiliang is a professor of management science and engineering and director of the Institute of Energy, Environment and Economy at Tsinghua University. Professor Zhang is a member of the National Experts Panel on Climate Change, the President of the China Carbon Emissions Trading Association, the Chair of the Energy Systems Engineering Committee of China Energy Research Society, and the Editor-in-Chief of Energy and Climate Management. He was granted the Leading Talent Award by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the First Award for Humanity and Social Science Research by the Ministry of Education in 2020. His current research interests include low-carbon energy economy transformation, climate change economics, and climate change policy design. Professor Zhang holds a PhD in Systems Engineering from Tsinghua University.
Michael Sterner gave the keynote speech The hydrogen and Power-to-X economy in Germany: insights on generation, imports, backbones, storage and demands
Michael Sterner is a Professor at OTH Regensburg in the fields of energy storage, hydrogen and energy system technology and head of the associated research centre. As one of the inventors of Power-to-Gas and Power-to-X, he develops energy concepts for companies and advises the German government and the EU Commission. He is a member of the National Hydrogen Council. In addition to numerous scientific publications, the engineer is editor of the standard work “Energiespeicher” (SpringerNature) and co-author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). He is also author of the Spiegel bestseller “How to save the climate” and has given over 1000 keynotes on the energy transition. His entire life has also been characterised by extraordinary voluntary work. The passionate musician and composer lives in Regensburg with his wife and three children.
Presentations
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Conference Committees
Prof. Abdul Ghani Olabi, University of Sharjah, UAE
Prof. Alexandros Flamos, University of Piraeus, GR
Prof. Anna Volkova, Tallinn University of Technology, EE
Prof. Anthony Patt, ETH Zürich, CH
Prof. Aoife Foley, University of Manchester, UK
Prof. Bent Ole G. Mortensen, University of Southern Denmark
Prof. Bernd Möller, University of Flensburg, DE
Prof. Christian Breyer, Lappeeranta University of Tech, FI
Prof. Dagnija Blumberga, Riga Technical University, LV
Prof. Erik Ahlgren, Chalmers University of Technology, SE
Prof. Ernst Worrell, Utrecht University, NL
Prof. Ingo Weidlich, HafenCity University, DE
Prof. Kristina Lygnerud, Lund University, SE
Prof. Leif Gustavsson, SE
Prof. Marie Münster, Technical University of Denmark, DK
Prof. Mark Z. Jacobson, Stanford University, US
Prof. Neven Duić, University of Zagreb, HR
Prof. Richard van Leeuwen, Saxion University, NL
Prof. Stefan Holler, HAWK, DE
Prof. Sven Werner, Halmstad University, SE
Prof. Urban Persson, Halmstad University, SE
Prof. Xiliang Zhang, Tsinghua University, CN
Ass. Prof. Benedetto Nastasi, Tor Vergata University of Rome, IT
Ass. Prof. Elisa Guelpa, Politecnico di Torino, IT
Ass. Prof. Gorm Bruun Andresen, Aarhus University, DK
Ass. Prof. Paula Ferreira, University of Minho, PT
Ass. Prof. Thomas Helmer Pedersen, Aalborg University, DK
Dr. Hironao Matsubara, ISEP, JP
Dr. Ingo Leusbrock, AEE INTEC, AT
Dr. Katerina Kermeli, Utrecht University, NL
Dr. Matteo Giacomo Prina, EURAC Research , IT
Dr. Ralf-Roman Schmidt, Austrian Institute of Technology, AT
Dr. Richard Büchele, Energieinstitut Vorarlberg, AT
Dr. Robin Wiltshire, Building Research Establishment, UK
Anders Bavnhøj Hansen, Chief Engineer at Energinet.dk, DK
Anders Dyrelund, Senior Market Manager at Rambøll, DK
Anders N. Andersen, Head of Dept. at EMD International, DK
Ard de Reus, Solution Consultant at Gradyent, NL
Carsten Østergaard Pedersen, BD Director at Grundfos, DK
David Kodz, Senior Product Manager at MAN Energy Solutions, CH
Dietrich Schmidt, Deputy Head of Department at Fraunhofer, DE
Dirk Vanhoudt, Senior Researcher at VITO, BE
Fabian Levihn, Head of R&D at Stockholm Exergi, SE
Gareth Jones, Managing Director at Fairheat, UK
Jan Eric Thorsen, Director, Danfoss DCS Global Applications, DK
Jesper Høstgaard-Jensen, CTO at Aalborg Forsyning, DK
Jesper Møller Larsen, Division Director, Verdo, DK
John Bøgild Hansen, Senior Advisor at Haldor Topsøe, DK
Martin Jakob, Executive Partner at TEP Energy, CH
Morten Abildgaard, CEO at Viborg Fjernvarme, DK
Morten Dalum, Norlys Energy Trading, DK
Morten Stobbe, CEO at VEKS, DK
Peter Jorsal, Product and Academy Manager at Kingspan, DK
Steen Schelle Jensen, Head of Business Dev. at Kamstrup, DK
Ulrik Stridbæk, Vice President at Ørsted, DK
Pictures
Conference (Credit to My Fotografi)
Technical Tour: Power-to-X - Navigating the Practical Challenges in Hydrogen and Methanol Production
Technical Tour: Aalborg Portland Cement factory goes for Carbon Capture solutions
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