BD4NRG Special Session in European Big Data Value Forum 2023, 25 – 27 October, Valencia, Spain

Last week, we had the opportunity to present face to face our main achievements and outcomes at the EBDVF 2023 in Valencia, Spain. The event was a great occasion to showcase our cutting-edge solutions and discuss and exchange ideas with other experts and stakeholders in the field of big data, AI, and data governance for the energy domain. Our session, titled "Leveraging on Big Data Management and AI to Deploy Consumer-Centric Smart Energy Systems", attracted a lot of interest and attention from the attendees of the event. We received positive feedback and constructive questions after presentations and panel discussion.

Here are some highlights from our session:

• Project coordinator Massimo Bertoncini (Engineering S.p.A.) introduced the BD4NRG project and its main objectives, challenges, and results. He explained how the project addressed the needs of different energy actors. He also reflected on impact and link to projects such as: I-NERGY, MATRYCS, ENERSHARE and  INT:NET.  
• Elissaios Sarmas (NTUA) presented the BD4NRG platform architecture and its main components, such as the data ingestion layer, the data storage layer, the data processing layer, and the data visualisation layer. He also demonstrated how the platform integrated various AI technologies.
• Apostolos Kapetanios (European Dynamics) described the data governance framework that was implemented in the BD4NRG platform to ensure the responsible and secure handling of data. He highlighted the importance of data quality, data privacy, data security, data provenance, data ownership, and data sharing in the context of the energy sector.
• Vangelis Karakolis (NTUA) introduced the experience and insight from I-NERGY as a bridge among AI-On-Demand (link AIOD platform)  and Big Data Analytics. He presented some of the added-value services developed in the project, showing how these   leveraged on advanced AI techniques.
• Nathalie Samovich (ENERCOUTIM) shared some of the lessons learned and best practices from the BD4NRG pilot sites, shared synergies and impacts to the challenges in parallel initiatives in the EU, such as CEI and recent paper on flexibility of demand by AIOTI. She explained how the project impacted these concepts evolution and benefits that were achieved in terms of energy efficiency, CAPEX and OPEX cost savings, user engagement, and environmental sustainability overall.
• Alberto Dognini (FhG) summarised the main conclusions and recommendations from the BD4NRG project considering the int:net project experience for preparing the ground for the Common European Energy Data Space (CEEDS).. He emphasised the potential of big data and AI in transforming the energy industry and creating a consumer-centric smart energy system.

In summary, speakers also reflected on BD4NRG contributions to advancing the state-of-the-art in this field. We also shared our insights and experiences from working on this challenging project.