The clean energy transition requires at least a 55% reduction in GHG emissions (from 1990 levels) by 2030, according to the ‘Fit for 55’ package. Thus, electricity grids will be called upon to operate in an overall context of 50% electricity production from RES of any scale by 2030. Thus, several challenges will become even more apparent in the following years: (i) reliability issues in electricity grids due to rapid decarbonization, (ii) lack of circularity in conventional power plant’s decommissioning process, (iii) operational issues in sector-coupled systems under mass electrification scenarios, (iv) significant computation and data processing efforts are required to manage the future grid. GRAVITEQA highlights the synergetic benefits of gravitational storage, Quantum Computing (QC) and Quantum Inspired Computing (QIC), and data-driven, trustworthy AI-based analytics services. GRAVITEQA develops and validates 9 components/methodologies up to a TRL 4: (i) QC and QIC for the Facility Location Allocation and Load-side assets management problems, (ii) a generic and holistic methodology to find the optimal energy storage technology or mix of them, to transform a coal power plant and mine into a long duration energy storage plant, (iii) repurposing of available assets case study capable of providing long-term storage and enhancing recyclability of a under-decommissioning thermal power plant and an abandoned coal plant, (iv) conformal prediction for robust energy demand of cold ironing, (v) optimal charging of cold ironing and EVs respecting grid constraints for reliable green port operation, (vi) seaport electrification strategy for seaports: analysis and scenarios planning, (vii) fast nodal flexibility region estimation algorithm for 3-phase grids unlocking the flexibility services procurement from distributed RES, (viii) end-to-end trustworthy learning for non-convex optimization problems, and (ix) a reference design for edge inference in smart grid applications.

Due to the current energy crisis, the EU is reaching a critical point in the energy transition with the Clean Energy Package. Residential demand response (DR) is a promising framework whose potential is completely untapped nowadays. DR-RISE's main objective is to demonstrate the benefits of DR in the residential sector, not only for the end-consumers but for the overall energy system and the actors involved. We will offer a holistic set of tools and services with a twofold objective: increase energy efficiency via optimal management and demonstrate the benefits (not only economic) of DR. The platform will be demonstrated in three different EU countries, focusing on gathering the most diverse environments (e.g., pre-existing energy communities, smart villages, urban blocks of flats, low-income households, etc.). Our approach is completely aligned with the EU's vision to place the citizens at the heart of the solution and empower them so that they can make self-aware decisions. Furthermore, we have developed a methodology around a strong social component that includes a significant co-design process of the tools with the end-consumers, considering vulnerable groups to provide a completely inclusive solution. A first iteration in the pilots will be deployed to assess the DR benefits, including the minimum required devices to do so. Then, building on the previous results, we will iterate a second time by including new hardware and DR approaches to compare the outcomes with the previous baseline. This two-phased methodology will allow us to take corrective measures if needed and assess the potential benefits of multiple sensors and control devices. The platform will therefore reach TRL7/8 by project completion. Furthermore, our plan for dissemination and exploitation, including communication activities, contemplates building the energy helix to reach more than 150 relevant organisations and potentiate clustering activities with initiatives such as BRIDGE and Built4People

The EnergyShield project will develop an integrated toolkit covering the complete EPES value chain (generator, TSO, DSO, consumer). The toolkit combines novel security tools from leading European technology vendors and will be validated in large-scale demonstrations by end-users. The EnergyShield toolkit will combine the latest technologies for vulnerability assessment (automated threat modelling and security behaviour analysis), monitoring & protection (anomaly detection and DDoS mitigation) and learning & sharing (security information and event management). The integrative approach of the project is unique as insights produced by the various tools will be combined to provide a unique level of visibility to the users. For example, it will be possible to combine vulnerability scanning with automated threat modelling to provide insights into software vulnerabilities present in an architecture in combination with insights into what are the key assets, risks and weak links of the architecture. The toolbox will allow end-users to predict future attacks (as it provides insights to what attacks can be applied to the weakest links of the architecture) and learn from past attacks (for example using the insights from the vulnerability assessment and threat modelling to prevent attacks, and learning from attacks to update the probabilistic meta-model of the threat modelling). The toolkit will be implemented with the complete EPES value chain who will contribute to the specification, prototyping and demonstration phases of the project. Although the toolkit will be tailored to the needs of EPES operators, many of the technology building blocks and best practices will be transferable to other types of critical infrastructures. The consortium consists of 2 large industrial partners (SIVECO and PSI), whereof SIVECO is taking the lead supported by 6 innovative SMEs, 3 academic research organizations and 7 end-users representing various parts of the EPES value chain.

The FORESIGHT project aims to develop a federated cyber-range solution to enhance the preparedness of cyber-security professionals at all levels and advance their skills towards preventing, detecting, reacting and mitigating sophisticated cyber-attacks. This is achieved by delivering an ecosystem of networked realistic training and simulation platforms that collaboratively bring unique cyber-security aspects from the aviation, smart grid and naval domains. The proposed platform will extend the capabilities of existing cyber-ranges and will allow the creation of complex cross-domain/hybrid scenarios to be built jointly with the IoT domain. Emphasis is given on the design and implementation of realistic and dynamic scenarios that are based on identified and forecasted trends of cyber-attacks and vulnerabilities extracted from cyber-threat intelligence gathered from the dark web; this will enable cyber-security professionals to rapidly adapt to an evolving threat landscape. The development of advanced risk analysis and econometric models will prove to be valuable in estimating the impact of cyber-risks, selecting the most appropriate and affordable security measures, and minimising the cost and time to recover from cyber-attacks. Innovative training curricula, guiding cyber-security professionals to implement and combine security measures using new technologies and established learning methodologies, will be created and employed for training needs; they will be linked to professional certification programs and be supported by learning platforms. Aside from the development of skills, the project aims at a holistic approach to cyber-threat management with the ultimate goal of cultivating a strong security culture. As such, the project puts considerable emphasis on research and development (i.e. research on cyber-threats, development of novel ideas, etc) as the key to increasing training dynamics and awareness methods for exceeding the rate of evolution of cyber-attackers

The European Commission’s policy framework (i.e., Clean Energy Package, FiT 55) seeks to decarbonise the energy system, encouraging the electrification of heat and transport, as well as the connection of more clean but intermittent generation. Electricity markets and smart grid digitalization should proceed very fast to enable the fulfillment of these targets, incentivizing energy consumers and maximizing the use of assets from different energy consumption sectors (i.e., electricity, water, heating, cooling, mobility) in order to fully exploit the flexibility services. ENFLATE project will build upon existing solutions on data drivel energy services and non-energy services, and replicate them in different geographies, climate and consumer needs. It will propose applicable consumer-centered flexibility platforms and test them in Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland engaging local consumers, TSOs, DSOs, market operators, regulatory authorities, service providers, manufacturers, academia. It will provide smart grid innovative technologies, peer-to-peer market platforms for consumers, smart building and local community cross vector flexibility services, integration of consumer centered flexibility with pan European spot markets. Efficient business models will be developed and tested, combing energy services with health and mobility services. The developed ENFLATE project will be interoperable with existing data platforms in Horizon 2020, like ONENET, CoordiNET, SmartNet and INTERRFACE, leveraging the benefits of data exchange and adaptive middleware architectures. ENFLATE will evaluate the impact of the proposed multi-vector flexibility services to local, regional and pan European level.