Enel Foundation reshapes itself through the creation of the global hub for research and training in the energy sector

·       Experts from Harvard and MIT participate in the new scientific committee

·       Research and training projects launched in Africa, through the Mattei Plan, and in South America

A new course is opening for the Enel Foundation, which strengthens its role as a research and training hub in the energy sector, enhancing its international outlook and consolidating relations with academia, research bodies, companies and institutions.

The Foundation’s new scientific committee and projects were presented during a public event attended by Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of Italy’s Council of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Flavio Cattaneo, the Foundation’s Chairman and CEO of the Enel Group, Gianni Armani, Head of Enel Grids and Innovation and General Manager of the Enel Foundation, Laura Cozzi, President of the Foundation’s Scientific Committee, and Lorenzo Ortona, Deputy Coordinator of the Mission Structure for the Mattei Plan of the Presidency of Italy’s Council of Ministers.

[i"The Foundation promotes collaboration between research and business to support the evolution of the energy sector globally" said [/i]Flavio Cattaneo, CEO of the Enel Group and Chairman of the Enel Foundation. [i"This synergy allows us to transform scientific innovation into concrete, sustainable and scalable solutions, enhancing industrial competitiveness alongside contributing to the global energy transition"[/i]

The Foundation’s new scientific committee includes personalities from the academic world working in the most renowned Italian and international universities, including Bocconi, Luiss Guido Carli, Politecnico di Milano, Politecnico di Torino, as well as MIT and Harvard.

This international positioning is also confirmed by the global scope of the projects launched by the Foundation. These projects are aimed at contributing to a model of structured cooperation between Europe and Africa as part of the Mattei Plan: from the managerial courses on energy transition and renewable sources, launched in Morocco in collaboration with the RES4Africa Foundation and the Mohammed VI University, which have already registered over a thousand participants, to the opening of two new training centers in Kenya and South Africa.

Against this backdrop it is worth mentioning the wAtt-Boost project launched in collaboration with RES4Africa, Strathmore University and with the contribution of IRENA. The project aims to support the development of African entrepreneurship in the renewable energy sector, facilitating the growth of local startups in the energy transition.

Most of the projects developed under the Mattei Plan aim to create a research and training ecosystem with the goal of empowering future African leadership to successfully face the challenges of the energy sector.

Within the framework of the just transition and the field of employment, the Foundation will address the issue of the skills required for the transition, also taking up the challenges posed by the development of artificial intelligence. Another topic being studied will be the resilience of networks and adaptation to climate change, with a particular focus on some of the most exposed geographical areas, such as South America.

The Enel Foundation therefore confirms its primary role in promoting a virtuous dialogue between institutions, companies and the academic world, addressing strategic and long-term decisions in the energy sector.