The very force that is supplying, nurturing and driving forward the energy transition also finds itself under a lot of pressure at times. Utilities are called upon to implement stipulated legislation in practice and meet the needs of their customers, all the while keeping their economic viability front of mind in a rapidly changing world.

Their areas of responsibility are extremely broad, spanning investments in renewable energy, mobility and heating transition, the expansion and digitalization of the power grid, flexibilization and cyber security. This is compounded by challenges such as staff shortages, bureaucracy, supply chain issues and time pressure.

According to the 2023 survey of utility companies (Stadtwerkestudie) conducted by the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) in collaboration with auditing firm Ernst & Young, 89 percent of the utility companies surveyed see the expansion of renewables as being top of their agenda over the next two to three years. Personnel development (86 percent) and digitalization/cyber security (85 percent) are deemed equally important. But most utilities also cite collaborations, setting up new areas of business and decarbonization as other vital tasks that are firmly on their radar.

As Europe’s largest alliance of exhibitions for the energy industry, The smarter E Europe is on hand to guide utilities and energy suppliers on their transformation path to a climate-neutral future. This cross-sector approach supports companies when it comes to developing sustainable energy supply strategies and finding both the right solutions and the right partners. After all, municipal utilities and energy suppliers can only strive for long-term economic success if they evolve from mere utility companies into innovative energy service providers.

Finding solutions and partners

The smarter E Europe supports utilities and energy suppliers in the transformation towards a climate-neutral energy system. The exhibition will be showcasing technological solutions, ideas for new business models and partners for concrete projects. Meet our exhibitors at Messe München, or right here on our website.

Solar

• PV systems for residential buildings
• Rooftop PV systems for commercial and industrial applications
• Free-standing PV installations
• Agricultural PV and floating PV
• Solar thermal technologies

Storage

• Stationary energy storage for industry and commerce
• Stationary energy storage for utilities and grid operators
• Green hydrogen (electrolyzers, fuel cells, H2 transport, storage and infrastructure)

Electromobility

• Charging stations and wall boxes with alternating current (AC)/direct current (DC)
• High-power charging and megawatt charging systems
• Payment systems, foundations and other charging infrastructure components
• Charging and load management solutions
• Electric fleet solutions
• Electric vehicles and Test Drive
• Mobility services
• Solar parking space canopies

Smart Grids

• Grid monitoring and management, grid system services
• Flexibility management, electricity trading and marketing
• Grid infrastructure (e.g. transformers, substations, secondary substations)
• Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI)
• Decentralized renewable energy (DER) management and system integration
• Virtual power plants/combined power plants
• Weather and yield forecasting and grid integration of renewable energy plants
• Digitalization, data management and analytics, IoT, cyber security
• Energy management, monitoring, controlling and load management

Let yourself be inspired and explore our daily accompanying program!

The smarter E Europe exhibitor list

Accompanying program

Partners