ANSALDO ENERGIA SWITZERLAND AG

Their core work

Ansaldo Energia Switzerland AG is the Swiss arm of the Ansaldo Energia group, specializing in gas turbine engineering, power plant optimization, and turbomachinery design. They focus on making fossil fuel power plants — particularly combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT) — more flexible and responsive to fluctuating energy grid demands. Their work spans turbine blade aerodynamics, combustion stability, condition-based monitoring, and retrofitting existing power infrastructure to serve as reliable backup generation during the energy transition.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 work (2016) focused on fundamental turbine engineering — blade aerodynamics, flutter behavior, sealing, bearings, and component lifetime extension. By 2017, the focus shifted toward applied, market-driven problems: retrofitting existing plants for grid flexibility, CCGT optimization, load ramping, and condition-based monitoring. This mirrors the broader European energy transition, where existing gas plants must become agile backup assets rather than baseload generators.

Moving from fundamental turbine R&D toward operational flexibility and digital monitoring solutions for fossil plants transitioning to backup roles in renewable-heavy grids.

How they like to work

Ansaldo Energia Switzerland participates exclusively as a consortium partner, never as coordinator — consistent with a large industrial company contributing domain expertise and test infrastructure rather than managing project administration. With 47 unique partners across 11 countries in just 3 projects, they operate in large, multi-national consortia typical of energy research. This suggests they are comfortable in complex partnerships and bring real industrial validation capacity that academic-led consortia need.

They have collaborated with 47 unique partners across 11 countries through large energy research consortia. Their network spans a wide European geography, reflecting the cross-border nature of energy infrastructure research.

What sets them apart

As a major gas turbine OEM's Swiss entity, they bring real-world industrial turbomachinery expertise that few academic partners can match — including access to actual turbine test rigs and operational data. For consortium builders, they offer the rare combination of a large industrial partner willing to participate in collaborative R&D while providing direct validation pathways from research to deployed power plant technology. Their position at the intersection of legacy fossil infrastructure and the energy transition makes them a valuable partner for projects that must bridge existing assets with future grid requirements.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ANNULIGhT
  Largest single EC contribution (EUR 265,227) and an MSCA training network — indicating investment in next-generation combustion research talent.
• TURBO-REFLEX
  Directly addresses the energy transition challenge of retrofitting existing turbomachinery for flexible backup power, a growing market need across Europe.