As the new year has started in earnest it is time to present the Institute’s fully revised Research Programmes. During the quiet Christmas and New Year break, the Executive Committee had the chance to consult with its members and scientific advisors to discuss the full range of its current and proposed research and study work together with an update of present commitments. Following this extensive review the Institute has revised and streamlined its various Research Programmes and initiatives for new work. These can be seen under the Research and Study Programmes section of this web site.
The Institute is now pursuing a total of 12 such research and study programmes which between them cover such diverse areas of work as Energy Policy and Market Outlook, Regional Energy Security, Hydrocarbon Exploration Assessment, Electricity and Gas Market Dynamics in SE Europe while others are concerned with Energy Efficiency in the Built Environment, Energy Poverty, Innovatjon in Energy and Energy Technologies.
Most of these programmes are up and running and producing concrete results and useful deliverables. A good example is the "Electricity and Gas Market Dynamics" Programme which produces on a weekly basis the much sought after by companies report on Electricity and Gas Market Analysis in SEE. Another Programme which has made impressive progress since it was first launched in April 2025 is the Regional Energy Security Programme which has already published a series of Research Notes while it is convening a major seminar on "Energy Security in SEE" under the auspices of the European Parliament on March 19,at the European Parliament building in Brussels.
Looking ahead the IENE is engaged in research and study work related to ‘future’ technologies which might have sooner than expected applications as energy system innovations develop and unfold at fast pace. In ithis context a latest Programme on "Innovation in Energy” has been added of late in order to help facilitate innovation in energy and also liaise with other projects of progressive nature. This programme was launched last May with a one day conference in Athens which brought together several players from different countries and from international organisations involved in forward looking innovative energy projects.
The Critical Raw Materials (CRM’s) is the latest addition to the IENE research ecosystem as their usefulness is now widely recognised and hopes remain high that there are abundant deposits in the SEE region. Yet considerable work needs to be undertaken in order to ascertain the geography and the volumes of CRM ‘s involved, the priorities in their extraction and commercialisation and the necessary liaisons with the mining companies which are to involved in their extraction.
Progress on the achievements and milestones reached in the various IENE Research and Study programmes will be regularly communicated to all IENE members as events unfold through the Institute’s regular newsletters but also through special reports.
