Call for tender: Submission of ideas open again – with a new focus

Green Energy Lab, research initiative and largest innovation laboratory for a sustainable energy system in Austria, invites you to submit new project ideas at today’s General Assembly together with the supporting organizations Energie Burgenland, Energie Steiermark, EVN and Wien Energie. “Today we have to fight climate change more actively than ever – from now on we are again looking for the most exciting ideas for a green energy system. We want to help shape our future with the best concepts, ”says Raphaela Reinfeld, chairwoman and spokeswoman for the Green Energy Lab. This means that the Green Energy Lab is already starting the fourth call for tenders from the FTI initiative for the flagship region for energy from the Climate and Energy Fund. “We support submitters and project partners from the further development of their idea through to implementation. We support you in acquiring funding for your project, where we can point to a very high success rate, ”explains Reinfeld.

Wanted: ideas ranging from climate-neutral security of supply to social acceptance

We are currently looking for promising solutions in four key areas, to which the innovation laboratory will increasingly dedicate itself: “Climate-neutral security of supply and resilience”, an intelligent connection of the various components in the energy system, which should guarantee a high level of security of supply; “Circular economy in energy systems of the future”, the consideration of the circular economy in the field of renewable energy generation; “Green heat and cold” and the best possible production of “social acceptance” for the necessary technologies and measures for climate protection. “As an important part of our RTI initiative, the Green Energy Lab is continuously promoting energy innovations ‘Made in Austria’. Only together is it possible for us to achieve our goal of making Austria climate-neutral by 2040, and this is exactly where the Green Energy Lab comes in. Namely, with the customers who are actively involved in the projects, ” says Theresia Vogel, managing director of the Climate and Energy Fund.

Milestones and growing project portfolio

Under the umbrella of the Green Energy Lab, more than 240 strong partners are already developing and testing innovative energy solutions. The Green Energy Lab now supports almost 40 projects with a funding volume of 80 million euros. Only recently, the research initiative has grown again to include two more projects in the field of energy communities and system flexibility (heat). Other projects have already been implemented and finalized: With Blockchain Grid, an energy community project, participants now save around 25 percent CO2 and up to 550 euros annually in energy costs through joint energy generation and use. Another milestone was reached in the SecondLife Batteries project, in which a large-scale storage system was developed from old e-car batteries and has now been put into operation. The Spatial Energy Planning project also managed to move from research to market with the innovative tool “heat atlas”, which enables optimized energy infrastructure planning in spatial planning.

Virtual experience

In the future, Green Energy Lab, which is characterized by comprehensive end-user integration, would like to make the projects even more tangible for people: the sustainable solutions and technologies come to life virtually on the website in animated presentations. “The project locations with their unique solutions no longer have to be visited on-site, but can be experienced virtually from home,” says club chairwoman Reinfeld. The Blockchain Grid and Hybrid DH Demo projects are already available – others will follow.