On May 30, the session "Renewable energy and its importance in Europe's energy development" took place, organized as part of JobShop, the Engineering and Technology Fair promoted by the Students’ Association of Técnico. The panel featured Rui Castro and Jorge de Sousa, faculty members from DEEC, Susana Ludovino, an alumna of Electrical and Computer Engineering and currently responsible for European studies and affairs at REN, and Diogo Almeida, coordinator of hydrogen and renewable fuels business development at Galp. The discussion was moderated by Jorge Marques, a student of Electrical and Computer Engineering and current president of the Técnico Debate Club, and included three thematic rounds: the European landscape (targets and reality), engineering, the market and operations, and the future, companies, and academia.

“Europe has ambitious targets for 2030 and 2050, but between political goals and the reality of engineering and industry there will always be a gap,” began Jorge Marques. This statement set the tone for the discussion, which started with a debate on the energy transition and its relationship with infrastructure.

Europe requires at least 42.5% renewable energy by 2030, yet there is talk of a lack of infrastructure. Is there a disconnect between what academia and policymakers project and the real timelines needed to build physical infrastructure, obtain permits, and operate the grid on a daily basis?

Jorge Marques, President of the Técnico Debate Club

Susana Ludovino began by highlighting that, at present, Portugal has around 35% renewable energy integration. “In 2025, 80 to 85% of energy was supplied by renewable sources. This seems high, but in a year with less water, wind, or sun, this percentage tends to be much lower,” she noted, adding that last year the target for wind energy production was around 10 gigawatts (GW). However, only 6 GW were actually integrated into the electrical grid. Regarding photovoltaic energy production, the target was 20 GW, while the actual value was around 8 GW. Although some technologies have seen rapid growth, there are still difficulties in licensing and construction, for example, of photovoltaic plants and power lines.

Rui Castro continued the reflection by reinforcing that there is “great enthusiasm in the renewable energy sector,” but that current bureaucracy contributes to significant delays in the field, making it necessary to create a legislative framework that allows administrative processes to become faster. “We have already proven that we are capable of producing wind energy. The challenge in renewable energy is not on the technology side. (…) Europe’s problem is not ambition, it is lack of execution,” the professor highlighted.

The technology exists, it is accessible, it is ready to be installed and we are capable of installing it. If we are not installing it, it is because there are purely administrative difficulties that prevent this installation from materializing in practice.

Rui Castro, researcher at INESC-ID

Jorge de Sousa complemented the discussion by highlighting the need to reduce energy dependence, noting that there is a difference between electricity and energy as a whole: “electricity represents 25% of final energy consumption. (…) While, on the one hand, it is relatively simple to decarbonize electricity, (…) the same cannot be said for final energy.” Europe imports approximately 55% of the energy it consumes, which carries economic and political consequences. To reduce this dependence, the researcher highlighted the possibility of electrifying sectors such as transport. However, he also recalled that this transition, in addition to requiring investment, is not applicable to all systems, which demands the search for alternative solutions that contribute to decarbonization.

The researcher also highlighted the need to consider the market in both the short and long term, taking into account investment, its feasibility and the future revenues of energy production, as well as financing, business plans and the consumer’s perspective.

On the other hand, Jorge de Sousa also drew attention to the existence of a mismatch between production and consumption, something that also requires solutions such as investment in flexible markets and storage systems like batteries.

The third round of the panel began with a discussion on the integration of young people into the labor market. Susana Ludovino highlighted that recruitment has currently been a challenge, not due to a lack of qualifications, but because of the specific nature of positions across different areas, from engineering to planning. In addition to academic training, she also noted that long-term studies require a great deal of learning time, which does not align with the expectations of many young people, as well as the application of soft skills, such as teamwork and proactivity.

From the academic perspective, Rui Castro complemented Susana Ludovino’s remarks by emphasizing the importance of reading, studying and learning the fundamentals. “We must teach how to think, to develop critical thinking, to anticipate problems (….),” he stated, highlighting the role of the university in preparing young people for professional life. The professor also emphasized that, during their master’s studies, students come into contact with the latest advancements in the field, according to the specialization they choose, due to the fact that faculty members are also researchers.

Jorge de Sousa also emphasized the need for companies to adapt in order to integrate more young people, as well as to use new technologies that contribute to optimizing results. In this sense, the researcher also highlighted that, although there are increasingly more digital tools, technology will always require the use of hardware, something that depends on the work of engineers, regardless of the field.

In addition to the three rounds, the panel also included questions from the audience, which covered topics such as the consumer’s perspective in the energy transition, the importance of creating redundancy systems, and the challenges in project execution.