Driving Energy Storage Through Industry Advocacy
At Fluence, we are committed to working collaboratively to grow the overall energy storage industry. We need to deploy massive amounts of energy storage onto grids around the world as quickly as possible to achieve ambitious carbon reduction goals and avoid catastrophic climate change – a feat that will require the entire industry working together to drive policy change and market innovation.
Fluence’s long-standing advocacy for the energy storage industry in the United States includes activities ranging from testifying about energy storage before Congress to serving as an executive member of the board of the Energy Storage Association (ESA). We are excited to expand upon our industry advocacy work in Europe, where Fluence director of market applications Dr. Holger Wolfschmidt is now serving as vice president of the European Association for Storage of Energy (EASE).
Patrick Clerens, EASE Secretary General, welcomed Dr Wolfschmidt’s appointment: “We are very happy to be working with Dr Wolfschmidt in his role as EASE vice president. This is an exciting time for EASE and for the entire storage sector, as European markets start opening up to energy storage and EU policymakers begin implementing the ambitious EU Green Deal and COVID-19 recovery plan. The global experience of Fluence, one of the pioneers in the energy storage industry, will be a true asset to the association.”
EASE’s mission is to:
- Stimulate the development and deployment of innovative & cost-effective energy storage technologies.
- Promote a fair and future-oriented energy market design that recognizes storage as an indispensable element of the energy system.
- Establish a platform for information-sharing on energy storage technologies and applications.
Dr. Wolfschmidt took on this leadership role with EASE because its mission dovetails with Fluence’s own (to transform the way we power our world) and because EASE is a well-respected, leading association in the European energy storage industry. We look forward to using our experience opening new markets, innovating new applications, helping customers achieve the full value of energy storage, and deploying and servicing battery-based energy storage systems around the world to expand and drive the role of energy storage in European power grids.
As director of market applications for EMEA at Fluence, Dr. Wolfschmidt brings significant experience and expertise to support EASE’s work. His focus at Fluence is on developing new applications for grid-scale, battery energy storage solutions, overcoming regulatory barriers, and taking energy storage as a key flexibility asset to the next level in the region. One of his key focus areas in EMEA region has been on the use of energy storage on the transmission network and pioneering the application of storage as Virtual Transmission Lines (VTL). The combination of association work, industrial exchange, stakeholder integration, and political discussions with his work for Fluence will help drive successful and widespread implementation of energy storage technologies that represent the linchpin of modern, resilient and zero carbon electric grids.
Prior to joining Fluence, Dr. Wolfschmidt was a senior key expert at Siemens focused on electrochemical energy storage systems in the Corporate Units, and a product portfolio manager for Siemens Storage Solutions. He has published more than 110 patent applications covering a broad range of storage technologies and 16 peer-reviewed papers in academic journals. Dr. Wolfschmidt holds an MSc in engineering physics and a PhD in physical chemistry from the Technical University Munich.
“I am passionate about energy storage and very pleased to be able to support EASE’s mission as an executive board member and vice president,” said Dr. Wolfschmidt. “It will take the full spectrum of energy storage technologies serving a range of applications to deliver the most efficient, reliable and cost-effective electric grids. I look forward to supporting EASE as an important platform for information-sharing among industry, regulatory, political, and financial stakeholders to speed the energy transition in EMEA and beyond.”
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