• The research will be carried out at centers such as the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems in Freiburg, Imperial College in London, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
• 4 million, it will fund postdoctoral research on technologies associated with the energy transition: photovoltaic and wind energy, electric vehicles, energy storage and smart grids.

Iberdrola reinforces its commitment to research as a tool to promote knowledge and innovation and contribute to the consolidation of a more sustainable development model. Through Fundación Iberdrola España and in collaboration with the European Commission’s Research Executive Agency (REA), it will promote the international postdoctoral research program Energy for Future (E4F), which will launch its first call for proposals on July 1, 2021 (www.europeanenergyforfuture.com).

The project will have a joint funding of more than 4 million euros for the next five years and will promote research projects focused on the main technologies associated with the energy transition and the green transformation of the economy: photovoltaic and wind energy, the evolution of the electric vehicle, energy storage solutions and the consolidation of smart grids.

With a duration of 5 years, divided into two calls of 24 months each, it will involve the participation of 28 researchers -14 per call-. To facilitate geographic mobility and the transfer of knowledge between academia and industry, the program includes host periods of 18 to 21 months at universities and research centers, as well as professional stays of 3 to 6 months at Iberdrola’s headquarters in the USA, Mexico, the UK and Spain.

The research will be carried out at 15 European and American universities: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Rochester Institute of Technology, in the USA; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; University of Strathclyde and Imperial College of London, in the United Kingdom; Université de Bordeaux, in France; and Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, in Germany.

In Spain, eight centers will participate: Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Universidad Carlos III, Universidad de Cantabria, Universidad Pontificia de Comillas, Universidad del País Vasco, Universidad de Salamanca, IMDEA Energía and Polymat – Basque center for Macromolecular Design and Engineering.

Presentation of the program

The Energy For Future (E4F) program was presented in a virtual meeting with the participation of postdoctoral researchers, research centers and universities with interests in the clean and sustainable energy sector.

The meeting was attended by Agustín Delgado, Director of Innovation and Sustainability at Iberdrola; Manuel Gómez Herrero, Director General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture of the European Commission; Ramón Castresana, Director of Fundación Iberdrola España; Teresa Rodríguez de Tembleque, Head of Training and Research Programs at Fundación Iberdrola España; Dharik Mallapragada, Research Scientist at MIT Energy Initiative; and Sheila Duncan, Director of Human Resources at ScottishPower.

Iberdrola, with excellence in training

This initiative replaces the previous scholarship program for young researchers promoted by Fundación Iberdrola España since 2011, to which it has allocated more than 3 million euros to foster the development of 180 researchers

It is also part of Iberdrola’s commitment to excellence in training. Fundación Iberdrola collaborates with scholarship programs of various institutions such as the Fulbright Commission, which each year calls for Iberdrola-Fullbright scholarships; Fundación Carolina, which has a program for Mexican and Brazilian students; and the restoration workshops of the Museo Nacional del Prado and the Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, which allow future specialists to complete their training in the conservation and restoration programs of these institutions.

About Iberdrola

Iberdrola is one of the world’s leading energy companies, a leader in renewable energies and a pioneer in the energy transition to a low-emission economy transition to a low-emission economy. The group supplies energy to close to 100 million people in dozens of countries and carries out its renewables, networks and commercial activities in Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia, and maintains markets such as Japan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others, as growth platforms.

With a workforce of more than 37,000 people and assets in excess of 122,518 million euros, in 2020 it posted revenues of more than 33 billion euros and a net profit of 3,611 million euros. The company contributes to the maintenance of 400,000 jobs in its supply chain, with annual purchases of €14 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, it has allocated more than 120 billion euros over the last two decades to building a sustainable energy model based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.