Speakers · ISG‑MEC

Keynote Speakers

Claudio Canizares

University of Waterloo, Canada

Presentation: Microgrid Overview

Dr. Claudio Cañizares is a University Professor, Hydro One Chair, and Executive Director of WISE at Waterloo, where he has been since 1993. His work on modeling, simulation, computation, stability, control, and optimization of power and energy systems is highly cited and recognized. He is the past IEEE Trans. Smart Gird EIC and an IEEE and PES Boards’ Director, and is a Fellow of the IEEE, Royal Society of Canada, Canadian Academy of Engineering, and Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering. He has received the IEEE PES 2025 Ramakumar Family Renewable Energy Excellence and 2017 Outstanding Educator Awards, the 2016 IEEE Canada Electric Power Medal, and various other awards, recognitions, and leadership appointments from IEEE, PES, Waterloo, and Chinese universities.

Marija Ilic

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA

Presentation: Dynamic Monitoring and Decision Systems (DyMonDS) for End-to-End Electricity Services

Marija Ilic currently holds a position of a Joint Adjunct Professor in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department and a Senior Research Scientist at the Laboratory for Information and Decision Systems (LIDS) and at the Institute for Data, Systems and Society (IDSS) at MIT. Professor Ilic has had a long and distinguished career. She is a world leader in the area of electric power systems. Her work involves the toolbox of systems, optimization, and control, but is also combined with a deep knowledge of the real-world aspects of power systems and a strong engagement with the power industry. She is an elected member of the US National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and European Academy of Science, Informatics (Europea), as well as an IEEE Life Fellow, IFAC Fellow and an Elected Foreign Fellow of Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering (CSEE). She remains involved in teaching and mentoring https://eesg.mit.edu/. She has pursued proactive service by working closely with broad community, academic, industry and government. She was the co-founder of SmartGridz, Inc (formerly NETSS, Inc), which she enjoys tremendously through direct interactions with the industry.

Yunwei Ryan Li

University of Alberta, Canada

Presentation: Hybrid AC/DC Microgrids: Tackling Today’s Grid Challenges for DERs, EVs, and AI Data Centers

Dr. Yunwei (Ryan) Li is currently a University of Alberta Senior Engineering Research Chair and Chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Dr. Li received the Ph.D. degree from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. Dr. Li was a Visiting Scholar with the Aalborg University, Denmark in 2005, and a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada 2006 - 2007. In 2007, he also worked at Rockwell Automation Canada before joined University of Alberta. His research interests focus on power electronics and their applications in distributed energy resources, microgrids, renewable energy, transportation electrification, and electric motor drives. His research has produced around 500 papers with over 28,000 citations. Dr. Li is currently the Vice President for Products of IEEE Power Electronics Society (PELS). He was the Editor-in-Chief for IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics Letters 2019-2023. Prior to that, he was Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, and IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics. Dr. Li served as the general chair of IEEE Energy Conversion Congress of Exposition (ECCE) in 2020. Dr. Li received the Nagamori Foundation Award in 2022 and the Richard M. Bass Outstanding Young Power Electronics Engineer Award from IEEE PELS in 2013. He is a Fellow of IEEE, a Fellow of Canadian Academy of Engineering, and recognized as the Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher.

Pedro Rodriguez

University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Presentation: Grid-Forming Power Hubs for Energy Communities

Pedro Rodriguez (Fellow, IEEE) received the M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Barcelona, Spain, in 1994 and 2004, respectively. He was a Postdoctoral Researcher with CPES, Virginia Tech, USA, Department of Energy Technology, Aalborg University, Denmark, and MIT Energy Initiative, Boston, MA, USA. From 2007 to 2011, he was a Co-Supervisor with Vestas Power Program, Aarhus, Denmark. From 2011 to 2017, he was the Director of technology on modern power systems with Abengoa Research, Sevilla, Spain. He was a Full Professor with Loyola University Andalusia, Sevilla, Spain, where he was the Head with Loyola Tech, leading a Research Program on intelligent energy systems. Since 2021, he has been the ERIN Director's Office Member with Luxemburg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), where he leads the Intelligent Clean Energy Systems (ICES) unit. He is also linked with UPC as a part time Professor. From 2015 to 2018, he was on the Clarivate's list of Highly Cited Researchers in Engineering. He has coauthored one Wiley–IEEE book, more than 100 papers in ISI technical journals, and around 300 papers in conference proceedings. He is the holder of 16 licensed patents. He has participated in more than 50 projects with industrial partners and several EU projects. His research interests include intelligent energy systems, distributed generation, and universal energy access.

Johanna Lakso

Power Circle, Sweden

Presentation: Energy communities and the potential of flexible resources: A Swedish Perspective

Johanna Lakso is the head of Power Circle leading the way for new technologies in the energy sector. Her focus is to create a sustainable energy system and she has previous experience from the Swedish Energy Agency and the Swedish Transmission System Operator.

Chongqing Kang

Tsinghua University, China

Presentation: Aggregating the Flexibility of Distributed Energy Resources: A Virtual Power Plant Perspective

Chongqing Kang received Bachelor's degrees in both Electrical Engineering and Environmental Engineering at Tsinghua University in 1993. He has been teaching at Tsinghua University since he received a Doctor's degree in Electrical Engineering in 1997. He is now Professor and Dean of the Department of Electrical Engineering, Tsinghua University, as well as Director of Tsinghua Sichuan Energy Internet Research Institute. He is a Fellow of IEEE, IET, and CSEE (Chinese Society of Electrical Engineering). His research interests mainly include power system planning and operation, renewable energy integration, low-carbon power technology, load forecasting, and power market. He has published more than 300 journal papers, including over 130 papers published in IEEE Transaction journals. His publications together have been cited over 42,000 times with H-index of over 100, as reported by Google Scholar. He was the Editor-in-Chief of International Transactions on Electrical Energy Systems (ITEES) during 2017-2021. He has been the guest Editors-in-chief for 5 special issues in IEEE PES journals and another special issue for Proceeding of the IEEE. He is member of IEEE Ad Hoc Committee to Coordinate IEEE’s Response to Climate Change (CCIRCC). He serves as the Chairman of IEEE PES China Chapters Council (PCCC) and member of IEEE PES Long-Range Planning Committee. He is member of the Strategic Advisory Group of CIGRE Study Committee C1 and also Chairman of CIGRE C1 China National Committee. He has been an IEEE PES Distinguished Lecturer since 2020. He was appointed Outstanding Visiting Professor of Imperial College London since 2020 and Adjunct Professor of Yonsei University, South Korea since 2021. He initiated the China-Korea Joint Annual Forum focusing on renewable energy in 2012, and it has now run for 13 years. He was honored with 2021 IEEE PES Roy Billinton Power System Reliability Award, 2021 Medal for IET Achievement, and 2024 IEEE PES Peter W. Sauer Outstanding Power Engineering Educator Award.

Vladimir Terzija

Newcastle University, UK

Presentation: Smart Technology and Big Data Analytics for Data Centres and Energy Communities

Vladimir Terzija (Fellow IEEE) was born in Donji Baraci. He received the Dipl-Ing., M.Sc., and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia, in 1988, 1993, and 1997, respectively.,He is a Professor of Energy Systems and Networks at Newcastle University, U.K. He is also a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Shandong University, China, as well as a Guest Professor at the Technical University of Munich, Germany. In the period 2021-2023 he was a Full Professor at Skoltech, Russian Federation. In the period 2006-2020 he was the EPSRC Chair Professor at The University of Manchester, U.K. From 2000 to 2006, he was a Senior Specialist for switchgear and distribution automation with ABB, Ratingen, Germany. From 1997 to 1999, he was an Associate Professor with the University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia. His current research interests include smart grid applications, wide-area monitoring, protection and control, multi-energy systems, big data analytics, and complex science applications in power systems.,Dr. Terzija is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems, Humboldt Fellow, and the recipient of the National Friendship Award, China.

Qianwen Xu

KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden

Presentation: Adaptive integrated modular microgrid for sustainable communities

Qianwen Xu is Associate Professor in Department of Electric Power and Energy Systems, School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. She is the director of Intelligent Sustainable Grid (ISG) Lab @ KTH, and co-director of Dig-it Lab (Vinnova competence center). Her research interests include advanced control, optimization and artificial intelligence application of sustainable power systems, microgrids and power converter dominated grids. She is Chair in IEEE Power and Energy Society & Power Electronics Society, Sweden, and Vice Chair of IEEE Power ELectronics Society Technical Committee (TC) 12- Energy Access and Off-Grid Systems. She is an Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Energy, IEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification and IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics. She is the recipient of Nordic Energy Challenge First Place Winner 2022, Humboldt Research Fellowship 2019, Excellent Doctorate Research Work in Nanyang Technological University 2018, Best paper award in IEEE PEDG 2020, etc.

Industry Leaders

Martin Flack

Head of Department, Resource Efficient Society, Swedish Energy Agency

Presentation: Energy Communities at the Swedish Energy Agency: Finding solutions and unlocking potentials

Martin is Head of Department at the Swedish Energy Agency (SEA). Before joining SEA, Martin held management positions both at leading management consultancies and Swedish government agencies. Martin’s work is characterized by a strong focus on finding solutions for sustainable transitions, including policy design and investments in green technologies.

Fredrik Carlsson

R&D portfolio manager, Vattenfall

Presentation: Microgrid pilots as part of the way towards the next level of Distribution grids

Fredrik Carlsson was born in Stockholm, Sweden, on January 17, 1974. He wrote his master thesis in 1998 in the field of "models of electric actuators for railway vehicles", which was entitled the best master thesis in railway techniques by Swedtrain. He received his M.Sc. degree 1999 in Electrical Engineering from KTH, Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He got his Ph.D. degree in January 2004 with the title "On impacts and ride-through of voltage sags exposing line-operated AC-machines". He has then worked as a researcher at the department of Electrical engineering, KTH, Stockholm, Sweden. Research was done in the fields of diagnostics, traction applications, and hybrid vehicles. At 2008, he started working as a senior R&D engineer at Vattenfall Research & Development with smart grids, power quality, wind power, asset management, transformer monitoring and electricity market. Since 2015 until present he is heading the R&D portfolio for Distribution.

Robert Heiliger

Head of Technology & Innovation, E.ON

Presentation: Energy communities – Simris and it’s learnings

Robert Heiliger is an experienced innovation leader with over 20 years of cross-business expertise in the energy sector. Currently serving as Head of Technology & Innovation at E.ON Energidistribution AB, Robert focuses on accelerating operational impact in grid investments, flexibility and resilient local energy systems. In addition, he is passionate about creating long-term impact in Health & Safety and Sustainability, aligning business objectives with environmental responsibility.

Cathrin Iden

Network Sales Manager Nordics, Milence

Presentation: Milence - building the backbone of electrification in Europe

Cathrin Idén is a seasoned leader in the energy transition, with a sharp focus on digitalization, sustainability, and e-mobility. With over 20 years at Shell/ST1, she built deep expertise in IT systems and commercial development, consistently driving innovation across complex platforms. As Chief Commercial Officer at Europcar, she led transformative initiatives towards electrification and digitalization. Now at Milence, Cathrin plays a pivotal role in scaling charging infrastructure and accelerating the shift to sustainable transport. Passion for change and a commitment to enabling transition to a sustainable future.

Linnea Abrahamsson

Consultant Energy Strategic Advisory, WSP

Presentation: Enabling Resilient Energy Communities Through Systemic Thinking

Linnea Abrahamsson is a Strategic Advisor at Energy Transition Advisory, WSP. With a background in sociotechnical systems engineering from Uppsala University, she brings a multidisciplinary perspective to energy systems, combining technical expertise with strategic insight and economical value. Her work spans battery energy storage (BESS), hydrogen systems, energy communities, heat sharing, and electrification strategies, covering both large- and small-scale applications. Linnea specializes in system-level analysis, flexibility, and stakeholder collaboration, contributing to projects that integrate economic, regulatory, and technical dimensions to enable resilient and flexible energy solutions.

Linda-maria Wadman

COO, Plexigrid

Presentation: Orchestrating Flexibility in Microgrids: Unlocking Multi-Purpose Benefits

Linda-Maria Wadman holds an M.Sc. in Engineering Physics and has over 20 years of experience in mission-critical control systems for electricity grids. Throughout her career, she has held leadership positions in Software Development, Engineering, Sales, and Product Management at leading global technology companies, working closely with international customers to deliver innovative solutions. She currently leads Business Development and Sales at Plexigrid, a company focused on transforming the future of electricity grids.

Sonja Monica Berlijn

Business director, DNV

Presentation: Electrification Challenges and the Role of Microgrids in the Transition

Sonja Monica BERLIJN, born in Amsterdam, received her M.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering from the TUE, Eindhoven, the Netherlands in 1994, her PhD degree from TUG, Graz, Austria, in 2000, and her MBA in 2012 from Melbourne University. She is an internationally recognized expert in Power Systems and considered a role model for young female engineers. She has been working at the High Voltage Laboratory of KEMA; the Netherlands (1993-2000), and at STRI in Sweden (2000-2008). She worked at the overhead line department at Statnett (2008-2014) and was responsible for the electromechanical and insulation co-ordination design of the world's largest voltage upgrading project. She was SVP for Statnett's R&D and part-time professor in Power Systems at the NMBU (2014-2021). She was professor in sustainable integrated energy systems at KTH (2021-2025). In May 2023 she started as business director and Senior Principal Consultant at DNV. Since 2025 she is part time professor in Secure Power Systems at the UiO. She has been and still is member of board member of several organizations and centra. Her main interests are R&D&I in the electrical power sector, energy transition, and security. In 1998, she got a Working Group Recognition Award from PES IEEE, and in 1999 she got the prize paper award from ISH 99/Hydro-Quebec. She became senior IEEE member in 2020. In 2021 she got elected as fellow in the Swedish Royal Academy for Engineering Sciences (IVA).

Ritwik Majumder

Senior Principal Engineer, Epiroc

Presentation: Electrification in Surface Mining

Dr. Ritwik Majumder (SM’14), Ph.D., is working as Senior Principal Engineer in Epiroc Surface division. He is a technology and innovation strategy expert for energy storage applications, microgrid and control of power electronics. He has more than 20 years of R & D experience in grid technologies. In Epiroc, he is working with requirement, opportunity and challenges of electrified drill machine connected to mine power system. He is also an adjunct associate professor at Chalmers University of Technology.

Michell Sävenmark

Digital Power and Microgrid Manager, Schneider Electric

Presentation: Citycon Lippulaiva Microgrid

Michell Sävenmark works as a Digital Power and Microgrid Sales Specialist for Schneider Electric in Sweden. He has worked with power monitoring software in Schneider Electric for 7+ years doing sales, programming and commissioning and also as a team manager.

Magnus Kuschel

Innovation lead, Innovatum Science Park

Presentation: Trollhättan innovation in local grid for industry and city

Magnus Kuschel is often described as a development optimist and implementation expert. His deep understanding of digitalisation, from strategy and architecture to innovative AI solutions and delivering results in practice, is mostly applied in the domain of complex manufacturing. He has a PhD in IT-Management and with research actions spanning from Volvo to Stanford University he has a broad network combined with curiosity for exploring groundbreaking tech. A current example is with a Living Lab in the city of Trollhättan, West Sweden, were the local grid in an industrial community has been steered to gain flexibility.

Fredrik Lundström

Program manager, Swedish Energy Agency

Pär Lundström

Senior Policy Advisor, The Swedish Installation Federation

Presentation: Free Energy with the Built Environment

As a Senior Policy Advisor, Pär is an expert in all aspects of Skills Provision and works in this capacity with The Swedish Installation Federation, which represents more than 4.300 companies that install, optimize and control heating, ventilation, water, electrical and telecommunications technology. Pär is also well connected within the Swedish Confederation of Enterprise and related European contacts with EuropeOn as the main stepping stone. He is also a member of The Cedefop Management Board. He has a degree in Political Science from Uppsala University.

Jan Hellgren

Director of Innovation, Vinci Energies

Presentation: Micro Grids challenges "Notes from the field"

Jan Hellgren, Director of Innovation at Vinci Energies Sweden. Jan has spent the past 20 years working as a business developer and innovator in the IT industry, with a particular focus since 2016 on the integration of IT and OT in the energy sector. At Vinci Energies, he is involved in developing solutions within the Micro Grid domain. Jan is responsible for and leads the Vinci Energies Innovation Center in central Stockholm.

Niklas Sörensen

CEO, Locus Energy

Presentation: Microgrids – technology is mature but are the business models

Niklas Sörensen, Managing Partner Locus Energy, a company that invests in, and up-grades Nordic energy generating assets. Former Managing Director of Ramboll Sweden, head of Infrastructure at WSP, SVP and Head of Division at Grontmij with responsibility for business and technology development. Vast experience from Nordic infrastructure projects, MSc Royal Institute of Technology.

Monica Löf

R&D Programme Manager for Smart Energy Solutions, Vattenfall

Presentation: The potential for Energy Communities within the Church of Sweden: A case study on the Sala-Norrby-Möklinta pastorate