Utilities innovating their way to net zero

Great discussion with the heads of innovation of leading European utilities at the Energy Tech Summit this week. Some take-aways:

• The momentum behind net-zero is growing fast: >20% of Fortune 2000 companies have already made commitments.
• Utilities represented in the panel have (global) net-zero commitments by 2050 and typically milestones by 2030.
• The big challenge is scope 3: cement, steel, car fleets, buying/selling 3rd party gas & electricity.
• This game is bigger than home-grown: Europe cannot go net-zero without imports of green energy.
• Start-up innovation is key to accelerate: finding strategic targets & defining an effective collaboration model is often of greater interest than buying them.
• The innovation challenge is not only a software play: the bottleneck is hardware.
• Innovative finance helps: SDG bonds, crowd founding renewables, etc.
• Transformative innovation requires leadership from the top: aligning culture, KPIs, sales processes, overall resources allocation is key.

Thanks to @Iliana Portugues from National Grid, @Ernesto Ciorra from Enel Group, @Valery Prunier from EDF, @Diego Díaz Pilas from Iberdola, @Paulius Kozlovas from Ignitis Group and @Thomas Schirr from E.On for great contributions.

#innovation #energytransition #renewables #renewables #cleanenergy #technology #emerald