A secure and cost-efficient energy supply is a major factor for social and economic development. Worldwide the energy sector has very high growth rates due to rapidly rising GDP in quite a number of countries. However, power and heat supply for the different sectors contribute significantly to global CO2 emissions and have other major impacts on the environment.

On one hand, for the medium term, the transformation of the energy system towards a climate neutral and environmentally and socially compatible energy system has been and will further be one of the major global challenges worldwide. On the other hand, this necessary transformation also provides market opportunities for new technologies both for application within and outside of the EU.

The EU has made the underlying political and technological objectives to one of its major fields of activity, which is reflected by a great number of large strategic activities, e.g., the Green Deal that has been launched recently. The common efforts need persistent investments, starting from R&D infrastructures which provide the basis for innovation.

It is expected that the energy transformation has to be achieved by more flexible, more integrated ways of provision, consumption, transport and storage of energy while at the same time promoting the development of existing and novel energy technologies. Energy innovation is driven by a common effort from industry and research as well as from the society. In contrast to other, more long-term-oriented fields of science, due to a high market-pull energy research is in many ways a highly dynamic field, with rapidly changing requirements and fast learning curves in terms of TRL-levels – e.g. the development of hydrogen technologies in the recent years. Moreover, the complexity of any energy system in a society leads to the consideration not only of TRL but also of System Readiness Level, which often does not receive enough attention. To jointly achieve the objectives of climate protection and economic growth, a technology-open approach is necessary, following different R&D pathways that lead to an integrated system with tailor-made solutions optimally adapted to locations, consumer needs, environmental and socio-economic requirements, as well as consideration on material resources and their cyclic use. Energy RIs, therefore, have to provide the necessary flexibility and, at the same time, offer reliable and sustainable services to their community.

Energy Research Infrastructures (RIs) have a major role in joining Europe’s efforts to drive forward, test and demonstrate technologies and their interplay in the future energy system. To a great extent they are interdisciplinary undertakings, as expertise from Physics, Engineering, Computer Science, Earth Sciences and other academic fields, such as Environmental, Social and Economy-related Sciences, have to work together to develop and implement energy technologies and system solutions. This is reflected by strong interactions of the energy field with other ESFRI domains. Especially in the highly diversified field of energy, ESFRI RIs have the potential to accelerate developments by leveraging synergies for the respective technological community. In addition, to ensure maximum impact, integration into the international communityThe European Research Infrastructures in the International Landscape (RISCAPE)
https://riscape.eu/

This Landscape Analysis for the Energy domain is divided in five main subfields: ENERGY SYSTEMS INTEGRATION – including networks, transport, storage and smart cities/districts; RENEWABLE ENERGY – solar, renewable fuels, wind, geothermal, ocean; EFFICIENT ENERGY CONVERSION AND USE – energy in buildings and in industry, Power-to-X, CCSU; NUCLEAR ENERGY –fusion and fission; and CROSS-SECTIONAL ENERGY RIs – materials and data, simulation and modelling. For each subfield, the Current Status will be presented, followed by an analysis of the Gaps, Challenges and Future Needs.

A representation of the organization of the Energy Landscape and the portfolio of Energy RIs is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1.
The Landscape of the Energy domain.

A few comments could be made. Firstly, while it is widely recognized that the Energy field is of paramount importance
for achieving a sustainable development in Europe and in the world, both the total number of RIs is low and their distribution indicates a lack among some of the fields identified in the Landscape Analysis: being a strategic document, this should be highlighted to the ESFRI stakeholders. Secondly, the nature of the RIs is very diversified: some are distributed ones and can enter into operation on a short time scale, others are singlesited with very high investment costs and long construction time before operation. For example MYRRHA, which was recently assessed as having a very high scientific value, has an operational horizon around 2035 with a cost estimate of € 1.6 billions.