INSTITUTE OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Their core work

The Institute of Electrical Engineering (IEE) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences is a major Chinese research center focused on electrical power systems, energy storage, and smart grid technologies. In European collaborations, they contribute expertise in thermal energy storage — particularly phase change materials and bio-based storage systems for buildings. They also work on smart grid integration, demand response mechanisms, and virtual power plant concepts, bridging Chinese electrical engineering research with European energy transition goals.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

IEE's H2020 involvement started in 2017 with ICT testing for smart grids (TESTBED), then expanded into thermal energy storage and building energy systems from 2019 onward (ComBioTES, TESTBED2). The shift shows a move from general smart grid ICT toward applied energy storage solutions with a strong materials science dimension. Their recent work combines grid-level thinking (demand response, virtual power plants) with building-level thermal storage — suggesting growing interest in the intersection of materials and grid integration.

IEE is moving toward applied thermal energy storage with smart grid integration, making them a strong candidate for projects combining materials research with energy system flexibility.

How they like to work

IEE participates exclusively as a partner or third party — never as coordinator — which is typical for non-European institutions in H2020. With 30 unique consortium partners across 13 countries from just 3 projects, they operate within large, geographically diverse consortia. This suggests they are brought in for their specialized technical capabilities rather than for project management, making them a low-overhead collaboration partner for European-led initiatives.

Despite only 3 projects, IEE has built a network of 30 partners across 13 countries, reflecting participation in large multinational consortia. Their reach spans well beyond Asia into the European research landscape through MSCA mobility and energy research programs.

What sets them apart

As a Chinese Academy of Sciences institute, IEE brings a rare combination: deep electrical engineering expertise from one of China's top research institutions, directly applied to European energy challenges. For consortium builders, partnering with IEE opens access to Chinese research infrastructure and expertise in energy storage and smart grids — a valuable asset for projects requiring global benchmarking or technology validation across different energy markets. Their third-party role also means they can be included with relatively light administrative burden.

Highlights from their portfolio

• ComBioTES
  Long-running project (2019-2025) on bio-based thermal energy storage for buildings, combining materials science with smart grid integration — IEE's most technically focused H2020 contribution.
• TESTBED2
  Continuation of the original TESTBED project (2020-2025), indicating trusted long-term collaboration on scalable smart grid and virtual power plant technologies.