In this video for viEUws – the EU Policy Broadcaster – Hughes Belin introduces the top 5 energy issues that will be discussed by the EU institutions under the Luxembourg EU Presidency (Luxembourg took over the rotating 6-month presidency in July). … [Read more...]
EU still struggling to agree energy R&D priorities
R&D in energy is about to get a fresh push from Brussels through a new EU-wide Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan that is supposed to harness the combined power of public and private research in different Member States. But to what extent will Member States agree to align their national research agendas? And around what common goals? The Commission believes energy R&D should be structured around “the consumer” and “the energy system … [Read more...]
Meet the world’s number 1 R&D player in sustainable energy: the Chinese Academy of Sciences
In a global study of top academic and research centers in a wide range of sustainable energies, the surprising winner is the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Among industrial innovators the number 1 is engineering company ABB. The in-depth study, conducted by KIC InnoEnergy and Questel Consulting, shows that Chinese research institutions are considerably ahead of their European and US peers in sustainable energy innovation, including wind, ocean and … [Read more...]
Four scientific breakthroughs that can take us to a new, clean energy world
Discussions on the energy transition usually focus on the economics of renewables and cost comparisons with fossil fuels and other energy sources. What is usually ignored, are innovations in materials and chemical processes, which are nonetheless increasingly important as agents of change in the energy sector. Innovation watcher Denis Kuznetsov discusses four scientific breakthroughs in materials research that could shake up the energy sector in … [Read more...]
Experts warn: the “Great European Energy Transition” can still go wrong
The EU’s great power transition – the liberalisation and integration of its energy markets and the expansion of renewables – has reached a crucial stage. According to three seasoned energy experts, the EU's energy project - one of the greatest missions ever to be undertaken by the European Union - has delivered some positive results, but it is also faced with mounting challenges - political uncertainty being the most prominent one. The … [Read more...]
Energy innovation is key to EU 2030 goals
A narrative centred on the opportunities of low-carbon innovation rather than the costs of tackling climate change could yet unite stakeholders in the debate over a 2030 EU climate and energy policy. Technological and non-technological innovation are needed for Europe to create a competitive, secure, low-carbon future. At its first event in Brussels, held in partnership with Shell, Energy Post explored what kind of a 2030 package would do most … [Read more...]
European venture capital firms support KIC InnoEnergy’s cleanteach startups
A number of top European venture capital companies have signed a collaboration agreement to support the most innovative clean tech start-ups in the EU. In a first-of-its-kind move for the industry, the community will provide KIC InnoEnergy’s 37 European startups with access to €3 billion in the next two years. “This agreement has exceeded our initial expectations. The idea of a VC [venture capital] community was new in this sector, and we did … [Read more...]
Is the EU done picking clean energy winners?
How far is the EU preparing to move away from its current energy R&D strategy of picking technological winners? In a new policy paper earlier this year, the European Commission outlined its vision for a fresh approach to innovation that takes the energy system as its starting point and focuses on system outcomes, not individual technologies. This is the R&D dimension of the EU’s current battle for a 2030 climate and energy policy. Sonja … [Read more...]
