17th International Renewable Energy Storage and Systems Conference (IRES 2023)

Bonn/Aachen. EUROSOLAR, the European Association for Renewable Energy, and the Center for Ageing, Reliability and Lifetime Prediction of Electrochemical and Power Electronic Systems (CARL) at RWTH Aachen University have joined forces for one of the world’s most important energy storage events. From November 28 to 30, 2023, scientists and experts from many countries, European and worldwide, have met on the Aachen campus to present their research results and jointly exchange information on the progress of storage technologies for renewable energies.

“Energy storage is at the heart of the deep and rapid energy transition and its renewable energy systems – and a foundation of critical climate stabilizing measures. IRES holds a world-leading position as a scientific refereed conference on innovation and development of renewable energy storage systems. EUROSOLAR e.V. is proud to host IRES 2023, our conference now in its 17th year, and to publish with the Paris-based open-access publisher Atlantis,” said Prof. Peter Droege, EUROSOLAR Chair of the Organizing Committee.

“Storage markets such as batteries, thermal systems and green hydrogen are growing exponentially, they are literally exploding. With IRES, we have been paving the way since 2006, and this year we are again creating synergy effects and a lively exchange of information between all players from science, industry, business, associations and politics. More than 80 scientific ideas and achievements on all storage technologies are on the program,” said Prof. Dr. Saša Bukvić-Schäfer and Prof. Dr. Michael Sterner, joint chairs of the IRES Scientific Advisory Board and IRES 2023.

The host Prof Dr. Dirk-Uwe Sauer, international pioneer of storage technology, explained: “In 2006, the first IRES conference took place on the initiative and leadership of Herrmann Scheer, which I was able to support with my scientific expertise. For Herrmann Scheer, it was clear that the expansion of renewable energies and storage technologies in all sectors (electricity, heat, gas) are inseparable linked. Considered a marginal topic at the time, today there is hardly anyone who disputes this. This is also reflected in the considerable growth of the research and industrial landscape in the field of storage, as well as research buildings such as CARL, where we are privileged to hold IRES this year. As a cross-sector conference, IRES is of paramount importance for the development towards a renewable and sustainable overall energy supply.”

The three-day event program was composed of lectures, poster exhibitions and technical visits at the center. In addition to the presentation of current research and development results, the focus of the 17th IRES was be on freeing all economic and industrial processes from fossil and nuclear resources through storage technologies and systems. This has had especially practical relevance for the representatives from industry and business.