The 2nd edition of Solar Energy Storage Future Germany 2024 concluded with huge success paving the way for a more advanced and prosperous solar future in Europe.
The one-day event organized by Energy Box was held in Munich on 18th June. It aimed to help the attendees seize upon a deep and comprehensive understanding of solar energy market and to support in improving business cooperation between local companies with international companies.
The event kicked off with a keynote speech by Nikola Gazdov, Chairman at APSTE Association for Production, Storage and Trading of Electricity. His presentation focused on Solar energy development in Europe. presenting growth data of cumulative storage installations in Europe since 2014. Gazdov highlighted that in 2023, Germany led the European storage market with a 34% share, followed by Italy with 22%. In 2023, the installation share for residential storage, commercial and industrial storage, and large-scale storage in Europe was 70%, 9%, and 21% respectively.
It was followed by a presentation from Andreas Hauer, a Chairman of the Board Bavarian Center for Applied Energy Research at ZAE Bayern, who delivered a speech on “Integration of Storage and Photovoltaics.”
Hauer explored the past and future of storage systems, the energy supply and demand chain, and the FSC concept, aiming to achieve decarbonization and supply-demand balance across various industries through diverse storage technologies.
The event’s first panel discussion was held on “PPA Risk Allocation and Mitigation: Concerning Regulatory Instability and VPPA”
The speakers were:
Stephan Dinse, Senior Renewable Originator at Vattenfall
Daniel Peschel, PPA Originator at AMPYR Solar Europe
Jaime Vazquez, PPA Director at Econergy Renewable Energy Ltd.
Max von Hausen, Country Lead for PPA Transaction in Germany at Pexapark
Jan Kloczko, Deputy Director Commercial (Europe) at Greenvolt Power
The session was moderated by Imre Vass , the Partner at Our New Energy.
Following the panel discussion, April Jiang, Overseas Sales Manager at GS ENERGY & GS COOL gave a presentation speech detailing the company’s rapid growth since its establishment in 2021. GS ENERGY & GS COOL is a high-tech enterprise focused on smart PV storage systems, integrating R&D, manufacturing, and sales. Jiang showcased GS ENERGY & GS COOL’s residential photovoltaic storage and charging solutions through case studies from Poland, Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, and South Africa, highlighting their high integration density, safety, reliability, efficiency, flexibility, and intelligence.
It was followed by a CEO panel discussion on “Strategy and Sustainability: Shaping the Overall Future of Rooftop Solar” moderated by Fabio Bucelli, Global Vice President Partnerships at Otovo. The esteemed speakers were:
Joachim Rupp, CEO at Detra Solar
Thorsten Preugschas, Managing Director & CEO at Soventix GmbH
Lars Josten, Managing Director at BeGreen Renewable Germany GmbH
Agata Krawiec-Rokita, Co-founder & CEO at sun.store
Peter Waldmann, Co-Founder and Co-CEO at strrom
The event was followed by a presentation from Risen Energy's senior Product Manager, Jiajun Ye. He presented numerous patents related to HJT technology, discussing the advantages of Hyper-ion HJT, including reduced BOS costs, decreased LCOE, increased IRR, minimized floor space, and more.
Ye also presented Risen Energy's project cases in various countries and their blueprint to reach 48+ GW of global capacity by 2024 for providing green energy worldwide.
Following this, Wei Shimeng, Vice President of Global Renewable Energy, at TÜV NORD, presented a speech on "Securing Investments in Solar+Storage with Emerging Technologies."
He said novel reliability issues arise as new photovoltaic and storage technologies progress. TÜV NORD, a leading third-party institution, is dedicated to offering reliable product testing and inspection services. Given manufacturers' diverse production capabilities and quality assurance systems, as well as the distinct requirements of project owners, TÜV NORD provides comprehensive services, encompassing technical support, equipment inspection, engineering quality verification, and acceptance testing, guaranteeing compliance with the owners' requirements at each stage.
This was followed by another panel discussion session on “Energy Storage: A Support to Local Grids for the Integration of Large Renewable Systems and for Reduction of Curtailment”. Christian Barba, International Business Development and Storage Director at EDP Renewables moderated the panel, where the esteemed speakers shared their insights and opinions. The panelists were:
Kapil Jaiswal - Project Manager at BayWa r.e.
Marco Frascati - Team Lead - Business Development and Strategic Projects at Pacifico Energy Partners
George Hilton PhD - Research and Analysis Manager - Batteries and Energy Storage at S&P Global
Patrick Pokorny - Head of BESS at GOLDBECK SOLAR GmbH
Erica Simathy - Engineer at DNV
ANDREEA SORINA GILICEL - Financial Manager at Nofar Energy
Farid Comaty - Manager at AFRY Management Consulting
Another panel discussion was focused on Finance entitled “Highlighting the Investors' Current Appetite for Renewable Energy and Energy Storage” moderated by Fabio Apra - Transaction and PPA Manager at Green Energy Venture.
The esteemed speakers were:
Anna Chmielewska, Associate Director, Senior Banker at EBRD
Alessandro Berti, Managing Director of Germany at Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV)
Mark Augustenborg Ødum, Co-Founder and Chief Financial Officer at Better Energy
Lars Josten, Managing Director at BeGreen Renewable Germany GmbH
Max Fydrich, Associate at Aurora Energy Research
Hannes Langenhan, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Aracari Energy
Following this session, the event had a special presentation by Alex Chen, Overseas Technical Support Manager at DAS Solar. He has introduced the development of TOPCon technology.
As a pioneer in N-type technology, DAS Solar has made remarkable breakthroughs in the N-type TOPCon domain. Through continuous investment in research and development, they have successfully raised the mass production average efficiency of TOPCon 4.0 Plus cells to 26.6%, with an open-circuit voltage of 742 mV, establishing multiple industry records and infusing new impetus into the global photovoltaic industry.
The next special presentation by Mr. Yong, head of European Operations at CECEP SOLAR. He has discussed the application scenarios and project references for various series of photovoltaic modules.
He noted that CECEP SOLAR, which has consecutively ranked among the top 20 in global photovoltaic module shipment volume for ten years, provides a one-stop business encompassing photovoltaic production, rooftop photovoltaics, commercial photovoltaics, agricultural photovoltaics, and intelligent energy monitoring and management. It is a remarkable enterprise with a large scale, comprehensive specialization, and strong overall capabilities in the field of energy conservation and environmental protection.
Meanwhile, the event had a next panel discussion on “Opportunities, Trends and Challenges for European Utility-Scale Solar Deployment” moderated by Jan Phillip Kock, Investment Strategy Manager at Encavis AG.
The esteemed speakers were:
Dirk Kaisers, Segment Leader Distributed Energy Management EMEA at Eaton
Oldouz Tofigh Flores, Business Development Manager at INTEC Energy Solutions
Salim Bouziri, Deputy Head of Operations (NL) at GOLDBECK SOLAR GmbH
Tarek Sabbagh, Senior Investment Manager at Octopus Energy Generation
The event was followed by a presentation from Christian Comes, Director of EU Business Development at Huasun Energy. He examined the development and prospects of heterojunction as well as mainstream photovoltaic cell technologies.
He highlights Huasun Energy's latest technological achievements: the comprehensive application of the grid-free 0BB technology, which effectively enhances the production line yield and the reliability of module products. Huasun Energy has delivered approximately 5 GW of HJT products to more than 40 countries and currently has a capacity of 20 GW of high-efficiency HJT products, making it the largest HJT manufacturer worldwide.
The next special presentation by Carlos Eduardo Benitez, Senior Sales Manager at Antaisolar. He delivered a speech explaining the importance of photovoltaic tracking systems.
Antai Solar offers comprehensive one-stop services encompassing photovoltaic tracking system solutions, ground photovoltaic support systems, BIPV industrial photovoltaic solutions, as well as residential and commercial rooftop photovoltaic support systems. Antai Solar is dedicated to its mission of "supporting a green energy world", facilitating the integration of intelligent digital development within the new energy industry, and assisting the global shift towards green and low-carbon energy.
Carlos’s session was followed by a panel discussion on “Battery Energy Storage: Opportunities and Challenges for PV Co-located and Standalone Power Plants”. It was Jan Kloczko - Deputy Director Commercial (Europe) at Greenvolt Power who moderated the panel.
The panelists were:
Hannes Langenhan - Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Aracari Energy
Laura Laringe - CEO & Co-Founder at reLi Energy
Dan Connor - CEO at Dais Energy Ventures
Jean-Marc GUILLOU - CTO Energy Storage System at Socomec Group
Rebekka Schuster - Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) C&I and Storage at EDF Renewables Deutschland GmbH
Mikel Pino - Head of Energy Storage Europe at Exus Management Partners
Following this, the event featured another panel discussion on “Rooftop Solar Development in Europe: Enabling Sustainability Strategies - Commercial &Industrial (C&I), Self-Consumption”. Iulia Meirosu - CFO and Board Member at Enexus Renewable Energy moderated the session.
The panelists were:
Stefan Froböse - Operations Director at Sunrock
Mante Bartuseviciute - Project Manager Mieterstrom at Polarstern Energie
Lorenzo Font Navarro - Managing Director at ekhi
Joachim Kaupenjohann - Managing Director at Klimaten
Piotr Loga - Technical Expert at Menlo Electric S.A.
Likewise, the final panel discussion of the conference was focused on “ESG Investment and Practice: Practice ESG concept and help enterprises achieve carbon neutrality goals and sustainable development”.
The esteemed speakers included:
Anna Dißmann - ESG Manager at Aquila Capital
Alina Sokolenko - Director ESG at Deloitte
Qendresa Rugova - Founder/Managing Director at Enfinit Sàrl
Letícia Bueno - Director, Sustainable Finance Advisory at Sustainable Capital Group as a moderator of this final session.
On the occasion, Energy Box hosted a special awarding ceremony, where different companies and individuals were honored for their significant contributions to the renewable industry in Europe.
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