SUNER-C co-organises three events in Madrid focused on the future of sustainable fuels

From November 25 to 27, 2024, Madrid served as the the meeting point for a global dialogue on sustainable energy solutions. Researchers, industry stakeholders and policymakers gathered for a series of events jointly organised by SUNERGY, the SUNER-C project, the Spanish FOTOFUEL network and the UK Solar Chemicals Network.

25th November: FOTOFUEL Congress and school on sustainable fuels

Held at IMDEA Energía, the FOTOFUEL Congress – School was dedicated to showcasing research and innovation in the field of solar fuels and chemicals,  with a particular emphasis on improving the efficiency of photocatalysts, hydrogen production and CO₂ utilisation.

Participants were welcomed by Víctor de la Peña O’Shea from IMDEA Energía, followed by a plenary talk by James Durrant of Imperial College London, who discussed charge separation and stabilisation in photocatalysis materials for solar-driven water splitting.

The event featured talks from leading experts in solar energy and photocatalysis from both UK’s Solar Chemicals Network and the Spanish FOTOFUEL network. Click here to check all the speakers and their presentation titles.

26th November: SUNERGY Spanish/Southern EU stakeholder event

The second day was dedicated to the SUNERGY Spanish/Southern EU Stakeholder event, which took place in Community of Madrid premises and focused on policy and industrial perspectives on renewable energy vectors. It began with welcome remarks from Víctor de la Peña O’Shea, Bert Weckhuysen (Utrecht University, SUNERGY/SUNER-C coordinator) and Pedro Mora (PTECO₂).

Miriam Bueno Lorenzo, Senior Advisor at the Spanish Office of Climate Change, presented the Spanish National Plan for Energy and Climate. This was followed by a presentation from Marcos Escudero Olano, Head of the Industrial Policy Division at the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism, who discussed the Net-Zero Industry Act and its implementation in Spain.

Philippe Schild, Senior Expert at the European Commission, then presented the Mission Innovation Sunlight-to-X innovation community, while Bert Weckhuysen gave an overview of the challenging requirements for a “refinery of the future”. Finally, Maximilian Fleischer from Siemens Energy shared an industrial perspective on the need for green molecules to achieve decarbonisation.

The event wrapped up with a panel discussion on the opportunities for the development of solar fuels and chemicals, featuring Bert Weckhuysen, Max Fleischer, Carlos Prieto (Moeve), and Miguel Ángel Hernando (Track – Técnicas Reunidas).

The afternoon sessions transitioned into a more focused setting, with SUNER-C partners convening for their 5th Consortium Meeting in close collaboration with the UK Solar Chemicals Network. These discussions included updates on the progress of the SUNER-C project, developments within work packages and planning for upcoming deliverables. The session also featured the “SUNERGY Beyond SUNER-C” workshop,  during which participants explored new ideas and mapped future collaboration strategies in breakout groups, reinforcing the network’s commitment to ensuring continued progress and innovation in the future.

The highlight of the meeting was a keynote presentation by Professor Erwin Reisner from the University of Cambridge, on “Integrated Solar Fuels Devices for Sustainable Chemical Industries.”

27th November: UK-SCN x SUNERGY x MI workshop

The UK-Solar Chemicals Network x SUNERGY x Mission Innovation workshop provided a platform for members of these communities and networks to align efforts across Europe, the United Kingdom and the international stage, highlighting how initiatives like SUNER-C can contribute to advancing and scaling solar fuels technology.

Frédéric Chandezon (CEA) gave a presentation on existint and future funding prospects in the field of solar fuels and chemicals within Horizon Europe, offering guidance on how researchers and institutions can leverage them. The event also featured early career researcher pitches, offering scientists from universities and research institutions from the UK and Europe a platform to share their innovative ideas and current projects, with the aim to build consortia that will reinforce the links between the UK and EU innovation communities in this field.

To conclude, Bill Tumas (NREL) moderated a panel discussion focused on identifying remaining gaps in technology, funding and policy beyond the current opportunities for Solar-to-X technologies.

The three-day series of events highlighted the importance of collaboration between research, policy, industry and society as a whole, to drive the development of solar fuels as a key technology for the clean energy transition.

The SUNER-C project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101058481