“Change — yes, but sustainable! ” — Although many different companies, perspectives and approaches met at the 7th Energy Saxony Summit on June 2, 2022 in Dresden, the common direction was clear: Change in the energy industry is necessary. However, it must be designed for the long term and must not lead to the same dead ends that fossil fuels are currently leading us into.
After introductory remarks by NOVUM Managing Director Mandy Schipke and a keynote session with Thomas Schmidt, State Minister for Regional Development, representatives of companies, research institutions and associations presented concrete ideas and current projects for a sustainable path to the Green Economy.
As part of an innovation forum on decarbonization, participants learned, among other things, how a climate-neutral factory can be planned with the help of a “digital twin,” how CO2 emissions can be reduced in particularly energy-intensive industrial processes, and how the Institute for Low-Carbon Industrial Processes at the German Aerospace Center in Dresden plans to reduce CO2 emissions with the help of high-temperature heat pumps.
The innovation forum on the circular economy then focused on sustainable recycling processes. From an economic as well as an ecological and political point of view, smart solutions for recycling batteries or their complex, sometimes highly toxic components are more in demand than ever. Christoph Remmel, Commercial Director of JT Energy Systems, explained how his company, as a pioneer in the intralogistics industry, is already transferring forklift batteries into a second and in some cases even third life cycle with the help of intelligent test systems and artificial intelligence from NOVUM.
At the joint dinner, the participants took the opportunity for networking and exchange. Because all visitors agreed on one point: the road to Green Econony is rocky. And regulatory pressure on companies is growing. But there is no “one right solution.” We can only achieve the 2050 climate targets together.