Review: 2nd Annual Meeting of the Energy Innovation Centre (EIZ)

On 10 and 11 June 2025, the second Annual Meeting of the Energy Innovation Centre (EIZ) took place in Cottbus – a two-day specialist meeting with high-calibre guests, scientific exchange and practical insights into current energy research. The second day was organised as part of the 25th Brandenburg Energy Day at the BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and attracted over 600 participants from science, business and politics.

Day 1 – Science in dialogue

The event kicked off with the EIZ's internal specialist programme in starting block B2, organised by the High Power Grid Converter (HPGC) Lab and the Control Systems and Cyber Security (COSYS) Lab. After welcoming addresses by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Andriy Panchenko (COSYS Lab), BTU President Prof. Dr. Gesine Grande and Stefan Müller (Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space), Prof. Alessandra Parisio (University of Manchester) delighted the audience with her keynote speech on optimisation-based control for grid frequency stabilisation.

In several sessions, EIZ researchers presented their latest results on topics including energy storage, CO₂ catalysis, P2X processes, grid simulations and cybersecurity. A poster exhibition, lab tours and a social get-together rounded off the programme. A second keynote speech by Dr Nils Ole Tippenhauer (CISPA) on the topic of Cyber Security of industrial control systems was another highlight.

Day 2 – Expert forum and presence at the Brandenburg Energy Day

On the second day, the EIZ had a prominent presence at the 25th Brandenburg Energy Day with its own stand at the specialist exhibition on the BTU's main campus. Visitors were able to find out about ongoing research projects, including a demonstrator from the COSYS Lab. Among the guests at the stand were Daniel Keller, Minister for Economic Affairs, Labour, Energy and Climate Protection of the State of Brandenburg, and BTU President Prof. Dr Gesine Grande.

A special highlight: Expert Forum 4 "Digitalisation for the energy transition" organised by the EIZ ! Under the moderation of Dr.-Ing. Christine Kühnel (Reiner Lemoine Institute), experts from science, grid operation and start-ups discussed the opportunities and challenges of digital technologies for a sustainable energy supply.

Dr Jakob Pohlisch (EIZ) opened the forum with an introduction to the key digital levers of the energy transition. PD Dr Thomas Strasser (AIT) then presented the European INT:NET project, which emphasises interoperability as the key to system integration. Ray Dubslaff (50Hertz) contributed the perspective of a transmission system operator and showed how digital processes support the grid transformation.

Prof. Dr Dr Tanja Kneiske (TU Berlin / Fraunhofer IEG) shed light on the contribution of AI to the energy infrastructure between hype and real necessity. Dr Sabrina Schmitz (SpotmyEnergy) closed the forum with impulses from the start-up sector and emphasised the role of data-based applications for user participation and energy efficiency.

The forum made it clear that digitalisation is an indispensable driver of the energy transition – provided it is networked, secure and practical.

With its second Annual Meeting, the EIZ demonstrated how scientifically sound innovation, practical solutions and regional networking go hand in hand. Together with over 100 researchers, more than 40 partners and a broad range of topics – from energy system modelling and storage technologies to Cyber Security – the EIZ is positioning itself as a key player in the energy transition in Lusatia and beyond.