Solarplaza Summit | Belgium

Jakob is Partner for Special Projects in Our New Energy and holds a Master’s degree in Economics and management. During the last 15 years, Jakob has been at the forefront of developing the liberalization of the Nordic energy market, for companies like Energi Danmark, Danske Commodities and 8 years as CEO of Lyngby CHP. Jakob uses his deep knowledge of the energy and ancillary service markets, to support clients in deriving value from flexible assets like Battery Storage, Power-to-X, Electric boilers, etc.

Jesse heads Aurora’s Research and Advisory team for the Dutch and Belgian markets. His expertise is the economics of renewables, flexible technologies, and energy policy, with a proven track record as a market advisor on several strategic studies and transactions for developers, investors, and policy makers. Prior to joining Aurora, Jesse worked for Eneco in Rotterdam.

energy transition projects and investors. Her day-to-day responsibilities involve leading financial advisory transactions in Europe and across Green Giraffe’s global markets. This includes origination of new leads, project managing transactions from kick-off to financial close and coordinating various capital providers (lenders, investors). Elodie’s experience covers buy-side and sell-side M&A advisory, green and brownfield debt, and raising development capital across the renewable energy spectrum.

Guy worked as quality, safety and project manager for Hydrogenics from 1999 to 2007. During this period he was closely involved in the development of the alkaline electrolyser and the first R&D models of the PEM electrolyser. Between 2007 and 2019, Guy worked as operations director for a large EPC company active across Europe in the development, construction and operation of PV plants, where he gained extensive experience in PV and built an extensive global network of specialists. In 2019, he founded his own company, Navitas Projects, where he provides technical and financing consultancy for renewable energy projects in Europe.

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Stella is a Senior Associate in the CMS Power, Renewables & Clean Energy team specializing in energy transactions and energy regulatory matters along the entire electricity value chain. She advises leading energy companies on PPAs and other power offtake arrangements, related EU and UK energy regulatory frameworks​, and renewable electricity project development. Over the last years she has worked with corporates on PPAs relating to projects across Europe and with governments on PPA-related frameworks, including removing barriers to boost local PPA markets. Stella has worked in top-tier law firms in London, Brussels and Athens. She is admitted to practice in New York State and Greece.

Wannes Vanheusden has been working for +4 years at 3E in the expert services EMEA team. He is passionate about accelerating the energy transition and specializes in helping companies achieve the full value of energy storage. He does it by assisting them in unveiling new markets, helping them in choosing the proper size or delivering technical due diligence. Wannes graduated with a degree in electromechanical engineering from the University Leuven in Belgium and complemented this with a master’s in management from the Rotterdam School of Management.

Ruben Baetens is a Senior Expert in renewable energy and energy efficiency who joined 3E in 2015 after completing a doctoral degree in engineering. At 3E, he provides advisory services with a clear focus on corporate strategies, public policy and market regulation in the broad context of sustainability, energy efficiency, renewables, and energy grids & markets. For over 10 years, he has deepened his expertise as an academic, and has been helping businesses and governments in their next decisions on sustainability. His technical expertise concentrates on the optimisation, roll-out and grid-integration of renewables in combination with strategic advice for governmental policies and corporate strategies. Ruben is Single Points of Contact (SPOC) for the Belgian policy studies, and lead expert in European research and policy studies. Since 2021, Ruben also took up an active role in the product development of SynaptiQ - 3E's software platform for the development, operational asset management and analytics of renewable energy projects. Ruben previously worked for KU Leuven where he obtained a Doctoral degree based on his research work regarding on externalities of heat pump-based low-energy dwellings at the low-voltage distribution grid: for which he was rewarded as Outstanding Young Contributor by the International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA). Earlier he received his degree of Engineer in Architecture from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in 2009. He has previously worked in cooperation with the SINTEF Byggforsk in Trondheim, Norway on his master thesis about high-performance thermal insulating materials and solutions for building envelopes; for which he received the Den Frie Tanke Nyskapingsprisen from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).

Victor Signes is a Senior Analyst in Rystad Energy's Renewables & Power Research team. He focuses on the wind, solar PV, storage and green hydrogen markets in Europe. His role is to cover market developments and analyze the future evolution of renewable energy. He covers project development in Europe, policies, power markets and economics. He has extensive experience in analyzing the impacts of policies on the market, economic modeling of renewable energy projects, and long-term scenario analysis. Prior to joining Rystad Energy, Victor was an economics research analyst at EDF, focusing on the renewable energy and nuclear markets. He holds a Master's degree in Engineering from IMT Atlantique as well as a Master's degree in Energy economics from the IFP School.

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Navigating the complex currents of the global energy sector, Daniel Domingues has emerged as a committed player in the field of renewable energy and technology. His journey is grounded in 16 years of diverse experience, where he has significantly contributed to solar portfolios and infrastructure projects across multiple continents. The inception of Planno marks a notable chapter in his career, standing as a pragmatic response to the growing need for advanced solutions in the clean energy sector. This venture integrates artificial intelligence with the solar energy market needs, reflecting Daniel's continuous evolution within the industry. Daniel's approach to the energy transition is a blend of technical proficiency and strategic insight, informed by hands-on experiences and a deep understanding of market trends and operational dynamics.

Jan works at Elia, the Belgian TSO, and is heading the Energy Management and Adequacy department which deals with matters related to balancing the grid (ancillary services) and the Belgian capacity remuneration mechanism (CRM) to ensure an adequate system. He is particularly interested by renewables integration and market mechanisms. Previously, he was managing the System of the Future department at Elia Group, studying the decarbonization of the energy system.

Ivo van Dam has over 20 years of experience in electric systems, electric components, and electric distribution, with the last 15 years dedicated to the renewable sector with projects combined with PV, EV charging, battery storage, and hydrogen. Ivo has recently headed the project delivery and engineering unit of Vattenfall and is currently CTO at PowerField and PowerGo and responsible for project delivery, engineering, and new technology development. From 2019 Ivo has performed several technical feasibility and market studies around electrolysis, green hydrogen and integration of hydrogen and battery storage in renewable generation units. Ivo is known to have the highest quality focused procurement strategy in the market and is a creative technology lover.

Wannes Demarcke is a solar energy policy expert with over 5 years of experience working at ODE Vlaanderen, the sector federation for renewable energy in Flanders. He follows up on solar policy impacting companies active in the complete solar value chain, who are united in the solar platform “PV-Vlaanderen. Advocacy is his core activity in alignment with ODE’s mission and PV-Vlaanderen members’ interests. He has done extensive work related to support schemes and solar mandates. He contributes to knowledge exchange by analysing and informing the platforms’ members of market evolutions, organising events and reacting to policy-related and press inquiries. His focus is on Flanders, but he also keeps an eye on European and Belgian policies.

Adriaan always liked building and solving complex puzzles which made engineering studies a logical next step. The next puzzle: operations management at a startup. Here I got to know the complexities of a global market and helping to grow a business, which was a captivating challenge. Following that Adriaan focused on analyzing facility management processes and translating them to supporting software. But there was an itch, a puzzle unsolved. The energy transition is key in meeting our climate goals but is seen as a cost. On top of that is it a market with lots of stakeholders and legislation making the topic very complex for many organizations. AYA was there for the best fit, guiding large organizations through their energy needs and create their ideal energy puzzle. Getting the chance to also guide the company as general manager is the cherry on the cake.

I am a Partner in the Brussels office of Fieldfisher in the Energy and Utilities team, and more broadly involved in the EU Regulatory department. I primarily advise on energy law related matters (electricity/gas), renewable energy projects and drafting of energy contracts. This further comprises environmental and climate issues, and public procurement. I am also, from a procedural side, involved in EU regulatory matters including biocides & marketing of products.

Johnny Browaeys has 30 years of experience in the environmental and renewable energy industry. During his 20 years in China he served on the board and as Chair of the European Chamber Carbon Working Group and took C-level roles in European, American and Chinese companies. His latest role was at Pulsar Power where he acted as Chief Commercial Officer, helping Pulsar Power’s transformation from a PV engineering to a full-fledged energy transition boutique engineering company. More recently Mr. Browaeys set up CSI, a bidirectional Procurement Services Platform for Renewable Energy Systems (RES). CSI supports European Companies to work with or source from Chinese RES suppliers and supports Chinese RES manufacturers to sell to or set up in Europe. Mr. Browaeys also cofounded DSC, a Digital Supply Chain platform that enables companies in Europe to vet Chinese suppliers on ESG and carbon performance online.

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Lars Rupert is founder and CFO of GIGA Storage. Lars has an extensive experience in structuring and mergers & acquisitions. He was involved in many (re)financings and the setting up of international investment funds and investment structures. As CFO Lars is responsible for the financial side of the business cases of GIGA Storage

William De Riemaecker currently serves as the Legal System Development Manager at ENTSO-E, supporting system development matters such as TYNDP and ERAA. His journey with ENTSO-E began in 2019 as a Legal Advisor, focusing on the implementation of market-related network codes, including CACM, FCA, and EBGL. William has advanced within ENTSO-E, assuming roles such as Senior Legal Advisor and Corporate and Governance Manager. With almost 5 years as an Attorney at Buyle Legal prior to joining ENTSO-E, he provided valuable legal expertise to companies in both the gas and electricity industries.

Edwin founded Solarplaza company in 2004. He is a senior PV expert and started in the photovoltaic solar energy business in 1994. He has experience as a solar energy consultant and project developer in more than 200 PV projects. Edwin holds a Master’s degree in Chemical engineering and previously worked in the Chemical industry before starting his first consultancy company in PV in 1994.

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