The energy transition is about the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy resources. The government sees energy transition as the means to achieve a sustainable, safe and reliable energy system. In addition, it appears that the energy user market is becoming increasingly critical of the energy services offered. For instance, consumers place higher demands on comfort. This leads to new services and concepts.
These developments pose an enormous challenge for the energy sector. They provide new opportunities, perspectives and possibilities. Technical, economic, organisational and legal insights will have to merge to reach new solutions. New jobs will be created which will demand creativity and new competences.
Hydrogen
‘Green hydrogen’ can play an important role in the energy transition. Produced with renewable electricity, hydrogen can serve as an energy carrier to store electricity or as a clean fuel for cars, trucks and buses. Hydrogen can also be used as a resource for industry and be used to produce heat. The professorship Energy Transition, with professor Hydrogen Applications Jan-jaap Aué, is involved in several studies on applications of green hydrogen in a sustainable energy supply.
System integration within the energy transition
Marten van der Laan (1964) has been professor of System Integration in Energy Transition since 2020. Within various projects, research is conducted into the optimal design of a sustainable energy system, consisting of different energy sources and carriers (gases, electricity, heat). In addition to technical aspects, system integration includes economic, organisational, legal, spatial and social aspects.
Energy transition & networks
Within his professorship, Martien Visser (1958) focuses on the role of networks in energy transition. During his installation as professor in Energy & Networks, Martien delivered a speech with the key message: “Through an integral vision of the energy infrastructure, I want to contribute to a reliable and affordable, and therefore socially acceptable, energy transition.” Martien launched the website energieopwek.nl, which tracks in real time how much renewable energy the Netherlands produces.