Spanish energy SME specialising in industrial waste heat recovery and seasonal thermo-chemical storage for renewable energy networks.
ENERBASQUE SL is a Spanish energy technology SME based in Vitoria (Basque Country) specialising in thermal energy systems — both recovering waste heat from heavy industry and storing renewable energy at seasonal scale. Their work spans two complementary domains: integrating advanced control and heat recovery into metallurgical and industrial processes (CIRMET), and developing thermo-chemical storage technologies that allow surplus renewable electricity to be stored as heat and dispatched later through district heating and cooling networks (RESTORE). They contribute engineering and process-integration expertise within larger research consortia, translating laboratory-level thermal concepts into pilot-scale demonstrations. Their positioning at the intersection of industrial decarbonisation and renewable energy flexibility makes them relevant to energy-intensive manufacturers and utility-scale heat network operators alike.
RESTORE (2021-2025) directly targets seasonal storage of renewable electricity as heat, covering thermo-chemical materials, heat and electricity storage, and ORC-based reconversion.
CIRMET (2018-2022) focused on heat recovery systems and energy flexibility for metallurgical furnaces and other energy-intensive industrial processes.
RESTORE addresses RES dispatchability and renewable DHC (district heating and cooling) network integration via virtual pilot demonstrations.
CIRMET lists advanced control as a core keyword alongside heat recovery system design for industrial metallurgy contexts.
CIRMET explicitly targeted valorisation of industrial wastes and energy-resource flexibility in metallurgical production environments.
In their first H2020 project (2018), ENERBASQUE focused squarely on the industrial side of thermal energy — recovering heat from metallurgical furnaces, controlling energy flows in manufacturing, and turning industrial waste streams into usable resources. By their second project (2021), the emphasis shifted from recovering heat already present in industry toward creating new long-duration storage capacity for renewable electricity — a move from decarbonising existing processes to enabling the renewable energy system itself. The consistent thread is thermal energy as the medium, but the application has evolved from factory floor to city-scale energy networks, suggesting a deliberate broadening toward the energy transition market.
ENERBASQUE is moving from industrial process heat optimisation toward grid-scale seasonal energy storage, positioning itself in the fast-growing long-duration storage and renewable district heating market where engineering SMEs with thermal systems expertise are in demand.
ENERBASQUE participates exclusively as a consortium partner and has never led a project, indicating they contribute specialised technical expertise rather than coordinating large programmes. With 28 unique partners across just 2 projects, they operate inside mid-to-large consortia (approximately 14 partners per project on average), typical of RIA and IA funding schemes. This suggests they are comfortable working in multi-partner European teams and likely bring a defined technical work package rather than administrative leadership.
ENERBASQUE has built a network of 28 unique partners spanning 10 countries through just two projects, reflecting the broad, multi-national consortia common in EU energy research. Their Basque Country base places them within one of Spain's strongest industrial and clean-energy technology clusters, likely giving them access to local industrial partners for pilot demonstrations.
ENERBASQUE occupies a specific niche where heavy industrial thermal expertise meets renewable energy storage — a combination that is genuinely rare among SMEs. Most thermal storage actors come from a materials or utilities background; ENERBASQUE brings direct experience with the kinds of high-temperature industrial environments (metallurgy, furnaces) where waste heat is abundant and recovery is technically demanding. For a consortium needing both industrial process credibility and storage system knowledge, they offer a bridge that larger research institutes often cannot provide at SME agility and cost.
