Funding will establish MIT professorship and support low-carbon energy and climate initiatives

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Building on a shared commitment to driving innovation and education in energy and climate solutions, MIT President L. Rafael Reif and Iberdrola Chairman and CEO Ignacio S. Galán met on MITs campus to renew and significantly expand the collaboration between the Institute and the global power company.

The $10.3 million, five-year collaboration aims to advance technologies and policies that contribute to the energy transition and the fight against climate change, supporting numerous efforts through the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) and related MIT initiatives.

"Climate change and the policies created to address it have significant implications for businesses—it will fundamentally change products, services, and operating models," says Galán. "Successful companies need to actively seek the opportunities a clean economy creates. Iberdrola constitutes a perfect example of the potential of the electricity sector. The company is a world leader in renewable energies, which represent almost 60 percent of Iberdrolas mix, and we plan to reduce further our carbon dioxide emission intensity by at least 50 percent by 2030. MIT, one of the world's leading idea incubators, is the perfect research collaborator to deliver the technologies and solutions that will lead us towards a clean energy future."

"Strong industry collaborations are critical to achieving MIT's vision for a clean energy future," says Reif. "By pairing the excellence of MIT's researchers with Iberdrola's embrace of clean energy infrastructure, we have an exciting opportunity to make important contributions to address climate change. We look forward to working with our Iberdrola colleagues to identify critical solutions to this complex global challenge."

Iberdrola will benefit from MITs advanced platform for research, development, and technological innovation to educate the workforce needed to build and operate tomorrows energy systems. The company also aims to achieve a competitive advantage by systematically improving its business performance and anticipating future market trends. The agreement reinforces the three main objectives that shape Iberdrolas program with academic institutions: knowledge transfer, talent attraction, and contribution to the companys social dividend.

The agreement includes $5 million in funding to create the Iberdrola-AVANGRID professorship at MIT, dedicated to research and education in power systems engineering. Both MIT and Iberdrola recognize the urgent need to upgrade and modernize electricity infrastructure in the U.S. and globally, transforming power systems and creating the "utilities of the future." To meet these challenges, industry and governments will need a new generation of young professionals ready to discover and implement innovative energy solutions. In addition to the professorship, Iberdrola is making a robust commitment to fund energy education opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students through MITEI. The agreement also includes training for Iberdrola Group employees as well as fellowships and internships at Iberdrola worldwide operating companies for MIT energy engineering students.

Iberdrola will become a sustaining member of MITEI, committing $5 million over five years to advance key technologies and policies for addressing climate change. As part of its MITEI membership, Iberdrola will join MITEIs Low-Carbon Energy Center for Electric Power Systems, the mission of which is to enable the efficient evolution of the electric grid and the electric power sector. It is one of eight collaborative low-carbon energy research centers announced in 2015 as part of MITs Plan for Action on Climate Change, a vital component of which is to deepen engagement with industry, government, and the philanthropic community to develop climate solutions. The energy education commitment is also part of this sustaining membership. As another element of its membership, Iberdrola will contribute to MITEIs Seed Fund to support early-stage energy research at MIT.

Through the agreement, Iberdrola will also expand its support of the Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research and will conduct sponsored research through the Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change.

To support energy entrepreneurship, the company will provide $300,000 to the MIT Sandbox Innovation Fund Program, which connects MIT undergraduate and graduate students with tailored educational experiences and mentoring, and provides students with funding to start up innovative projects or entrepreneurial initiatives.

This expanded collaboration follows Iberdrolas multi-year sponsorship of MITEIs Utility of the Future study and the corresponding report released in December 2016. The study—which MITEI conducted with Spains Institute for Research in Technology at Comillas Pontifical University (IIT-Comillas)—highlighted emerging trends in the electric power sector, where decarbonization, digitization, renewable energies and energy storage will continue to define the industry and determine a more flexible and efficient consumption of energy.

About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the worlds largest utilities and the European leader in renewable energy production. We produce and provide energy to over 100 million people around the world, mostly in UK, USA, Mexico, Brazil and Spain. We believe that fighting climate change and investing in a low-carbon economy makes good business sense. Our commitment to sustainability features prominently on indexes such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, Carbon Disclosure Project and FTSE4Good.

Iberdrola runs its own University Program designed to reinforce the companys link with top academic institutions worldwide while creating a global community that fosters collaboration, entrepreneurial culture and the transfer of knowledge. To date, five institutions of excellence have been selected, namely MIT, Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico), and the universities of Strathclyde (UK) Comillas and Salamanca (Spain).

About MITEI: The MIT Energy Initiative is MITs hub for multidisciplinary energy research, education, and outreach. Through these three pillars, MITEI helps develop the technologies and solutions that will deliver clean, affordable, and plentiful sources of energy. Founded in 2006, MITEIs mission is to advance low- and no-carbon emissions solutions that will efficiently meet growing global energy needs while minimizing environmental impacts, dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and mitigating climate change. MITEI engages with industry and government through its Low-Carbon Energy Centers, comprehensive reports to inform decision makers, and other multi-stakeholder research initiatives. Additional information is available at energy.mit.edu.