INSTITUTO PARA LA DIVERSIFICACION Y AHORRO DE LA ENERGIA

Their core work

IDAE is Spain's national energy agency responsible for promoting energy efficiency, renewable energy, and clean technology adoption across the country. Within H2020, they serve as Spain's representative in EU-wide Concerted Actions — structured dialogues where member states share implementation experience on key energy directives (EPBD, EED, RED). They also contribute policy and regulatory expertise to innovation projects on building energy performance, distributed energy markets, and vehicle-to-grid integration. Their core value lies in bridging EU policy frameworks with national-level implementation realities.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2015-2018, IDAE focused almost exclusively on EU directive transposition — particularly the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) and energy efficiency policy benchmarking across member states. From 2019 onward, while maintaining their policy coordination role, they expanded into technology-oriented projects: smart meters, IoT-based building assessment (ePANACEA), distributed generation markets (DRES2Market), vehicle-to-grid flexibility (V2Market), and citizen energy communities (NEON). This shift reflects a move from pure policy dialogue toward the practical tools and market mechanisms needed to deliver on those policies.

IDAE is moving from policy coordination toward energy market design and demand-side flexibility — expect growing interest in V2G, community energy, and smart grid regulation.

How they like to work

IDAE never coordinates projects — they participate as a national authority contributing regulatory knowledge and implementation experience. With 210 unique partners across 32 countries, they operate in very large consortia typical of Concerted Actions (which involve all EU member states). Their role is institutional rather than technical: they bring the perspective of a national energy agency, which makes them a reliable but specific type of partner — valuable for policy validation and national-level deployment, less so for deep R&D.

IDAE has collaborated with 210 unique partners across 32 countries, making them one of the most broadly connected energy policy actors in H2020. This breadth comes largely from Concerted Actions, which by design include representatives from every EU member state.

What sets them apart

IDAE is not a research institute — it is the Spanish government's energy agency, which gives it authority and access that academic or private partners cannot replicate. For any consortium needing a credible national authority to validate policy assumptions, test regulatory feasibility, or demonstrate real-world deployment conditions in Spain, IDAE is a natural fit. Their continuous involvement in all major energy Concerted Actions (EPBD, EED, RED) since 2015 means they have deep institutional knowledge of how energy directives translate into practice across Europe.

Highlights from their portfolio

• V2Market
  Largest EC contribution (EUR 159,850) and represents IDAE's push into e-mobility and demand-side flexibility — a departure from their traditional policy coordination role.
• ePANACEA
  Most technically ambitious project in their portfolio, combining IoT, smart meters, and simulation methods for building energy certification — bridges their EPBD policy expertise with real technology deployment.
• DRES2Market
  Second-largest funding (EUR 131,875) and focuses on enabling distributed renewable generation to participate in energy markets — connecting IDAE's renewable energy policy work to market design.