Integrid - Bridging the Gap

4 FOREWORD InteGrid, a European funded innovation project with timely delivery in uncertain times. “The future will be what we make it. And Europe will be what we want it to be” . These are words from the President of the European Commission, Ursula von Der Leyen, during her State of Union speech. We would like to echo these words, particularly given the difficult period we are facing and the challenges ahead in our construction of a sustainable and smart energy ecosystem. Innovation is key, and major initiatives such as Horizon 2020, the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever, serve as vital catalysts for change. They also serve to connect industry, vendors, start-ups, academia, policy makers, citizens, consumers and many other stakeholders in a co-creative process that stimulates European development and confirms Europe as the major global player in energy transition. The InteGrid project has this distinctive characteristic of addressing the needs of a sector facing major changes in a period punctuated by exemplary energy policies that are reshaping our economy, such as the Energy Union Strategy, the Clean Energy Package and the most recent European Green Deal, while maintaining the quality and timeliness of deliverables and results. As with other relevant European funded projects, it represents a means to an end, notably an important step in the reaffirmation of the smart electricity distribution system as the backbone of the new EU distributed energy ecosystem, increasing the active participation of users, citizens, consumers, prosumers, communities, cities, and other possible forms of cooperation, in a major development that concerns us all. In times like these, where certainties no longer exist, our resilient infrastructures will need to be even smarter and more capable of integrating resources and dealing with unforeseeable events and behaviours in a cost- effective manner, and we must keep moving forward together as a smart and innovative ecosystem, to make Europe the unchallenged leader. Enjoy the read! Lisbon, Ljubljana and Stockholm, 29 October 2020. João Torres CEO of EDP Distribuição Andrej Ribič CEO of Electro-Ljublijana Sigbritt Karlsson President of KTH Royal Institute of Technology