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By | December 13, 2021

LF Energy Seeks Partners in Upcoming Research Study on Transformation Readiness of System Operators

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December, 2021

 OVERVIEW

A fundamental part of meeting the objectives of the United Nations Climate Conference will depend on the acceleration of power system network transformation. As it stands today, future targets will not be met, complicated by the fact that clean energy initiatives such as renewable energy and electric vehicles cause increasing fluctuations in power supply and demand that are difficult for grid operators to control and optimize. Modern digital substations now require an increasing number of computers to support more field devices and applications, and a higher degree of automation. Utilities across the world are at vastly different states of readiness to transform their management of energy demand and delivery to accommodate greener options, and to begin to digitize their infrastructure accordingly. There is evidence that finding qualified human capital, with competencies relevant to the energy transition, and in particular, relevant to digitalization, is a challenge.

OBJECTIVES

Greater understanding in terms of what system operators can and should do to transition to a greener future is needed. LF Energy is proposing a research project in collaboration with Linux Foundation Research, RWTHAachen, and others that seeks to address three fundamental questions with the aim of accelerating collaboration among energy stakeholders at all levels, from producers to consumers. 

First, what is the level of readiness for energy stakeholders in their transformation path for meeting the green energy transition using digital technologies? 

Second, what is the extent of the knowledge gap for educational training and human resource development programming around grid digitization and transformation? 

Third, what are the core competencies needed to be created to fill this gap?

BENEFITS OF THE RESEARCH

This research intends to provide actionable insights stemming from the state of digital transformation readiness among energy stakeholders, and the identification of existing gaps in educational tooling. With these insights, we aim to create greater awareness of the state of transformation readiness, suggest best practices, and influence both contributions to, and the adoption of, open source technology stacks vital to achieving climate targets.

ENERGY STAKEHOLDERS

  • Regulatory bodies
  • Standards bodies
  • Energy industry leaders
  • Energy technology leaders
  • Developers
  • Governments
  • Academia
  • Venture capitalists
  • Non-government organizations
  • Civil society 

PROJECT LEADERSHIP

The project will be led by Dr. Shuli Goodman, Founder and Executive Director of LF Energy, Hilary Carter, VP Research at the Linux Foundation, Dr. Antonello Monti, Professor at RWTH Aachen University, Dr. Ferdinanda Ponci, Professor at RWTH Aachen University. 

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

The project will be published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license, and the results will be made freely available to all at the time of publication. 

PARTNERSHIP BENEFITS

Project partners contributing USD 10,000 receive recognition in the project’s announcement and social media shareables, logo placement on the project cover, the opportunity to collaborate on the qualitative interview process, early access to the research findings, and an acknowledgment in the research report.

SCHEDULE

The program will begin Q2, 2022. Research will be completed by Q3, 2022.

Total costs are TBD depending on scope of final survey.

CONTACT

research@lfenergy.org