On November 15th, SolarPower Europe hosted at our offices in Brussels a Digitalisation Strategy Day, bringing together leading voices from the solar PV industry, policymakers, and data experts for a day of insightful discussions and strategic collaboration. The event provided a unique platform to explore the role of digitalisation in the solar industry, foster member connections, and generate actionable outcomes to drive data innovation across the PV value chain.
The opening session set the stage with an in-depth examination of EU policy trends, industry challenges, and opportunities for the digitalisation of solar PV. Mark van Stiphout from DG ENER highlighted key developments, including the launch of the Data for Energy Expert Group and the European Commission’s roadmap for digitalisation and AI.
Participants emphasised the need for standardisation and governance in AI-driven solar operations calling for industry-led definitions of data standards and suggested policy support for governance frameworks to ensure interoperability across PV systems.
Discover the work of SolarPower Europe's Digitalisation workstream:
SolarPower Europe's Digitalisation workstream
Click here
The second session of discussion was dedicated to SolarPower Europe’s project to enhance data handling from development to operations and maintenance. Experts shared insights on practices and challenges in data collection, sharing, and operational optimisation. Adopting a unified list of data points was highlighted as a way to streamline onboarding, improve operational efficiency, and enable power plant operators to map data points more effectively. This approach increases data accuracy, enhances visibility into the financial value of accurate power plant data, and unlocks opportunities for advanced analytics and AI applications.
During the third session, industry leaders explored the transformative impact of AI on solar operations, with presentations showcasing best practices in predictive maintenance, energy forecasting, and performance optimisation. Companies like EDP highlighted the importance of training employees across all levels to maximise AI’s potential, with large language models (LLMs) building on internal data already enhancing internal processes. Trust in AI tools hinges on high-quality data, emphasising the need for clear data quality responsibilities within companies. Participants called for industry-wide best practice guidelines to facilitate AI adoption.
The final session addressed the need for data standardisation to enable behind-the-meter optimisation and smart grid integration. Emerging standards such as EEE-Bus and Matter were explored as solutions to enhance sector coupling and mitigate grid congestion. It’s critical that communication protocols for behind-the-meter assets are harmonised, just like access to market platforms and grid operators. Today, solar companies deploy hundreds of software developers to manage this integration.
SolarPower Europe remains committed to advancing digitalisation in the solar industry, bridging gaps, and enabling data-driven innovation.
By fostering collaboration across the industry, the Digitalisation Strategy Day underscored the critical role of data and digital tools in achieving Europe’s solar energy ambitions.
Interested in becoming a member?
Why become a member?
Do you want to stay up-to-date about solar energy?
