Past Event

Aurora Spring Forum London 2026

Apr 29, 2026
London
Doors open at 08:00 am

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Ambition, Affordability, Resilience: The Next Steps for the European Energy Transition

As the global energy transition entered its next decisive phase, 2026 tested whether governments, investors, and industry could sustain momentum towards net zero amid intensifying geopolitical and economic pressures. China continued to reinforce its influence in clean technology, while the U.S. and Europe diverged over industrial strategy and climate ambition. Within Europe, fiscal constraints and election cycles narrowed the scope of green policy just as electrification, AI, and the digital economy drove surging power demand. Technological progress, from rapid battery deployment to AI enabled optimisation, continued to propel decarbonisation forward, yet key questions remained around how Europe could balance ambition with affordability, maintain resilience amid fossil retirements, and finance the €5.6 trillion investment needed to deliver its energy transition.

The event brought together senior leaders from across the energy sector for a full day of intellectual engagement, thought provoking analysis, debate, and networking focused on the medium and long term challenges shaping Europe’s energy future.

You can check out the 2026 highlights video.

Speakers

Lord Browne

Chairman, BeyondNetZero, Former CEO, BP

Martin Pibworth

CEO, SSE

Jenny Bates

2025-26 Heywood Fellow, Blavatnik School of Government, Oxford University

Chris O’Shea

CEO, Centrica

Dr. Nagat Karroum

SVP Strategy & Business Development, Uniper

Andreas Schierenbeck

CEO, Hitachi Energy

Michael Lewis

CEO, Uniper

Miya Paolucci

UK CEO, Engie

Greg Jackson

Founder & CEO, Octopus Energy Group

Luba Kotzeva

CEO & Founder, Etara; NED, NTR plc

Rui Teixeira

Group CFO, EDP and EDP Renewables

Ivo Prokopiev

CEO, Renalfa

Caroline Taylor

Director, Infrastructure & Energy Capital, Macquarie Group

Fintan Slye

CEO, NESO

Keith Anderson

Chief Executive, ScottishPower

Laurie Fitch

Senior Advisor, PJT Partners

Horatio Evers

EU CEO, Ming Yang Smart Energy

Christopher Hunt

Co-Founder and Partner, Sandbrook Capital

Francois Sterin

COO, Data4 Group

Sofia Håkansson

Director Markets, Strategy & Business Development, Vattenfall

Richard Butland

CEO, Highview Power

Ana Quelhas

EVP Hydrogen and Data Centres, EDP Renewables

Peter Highmore

SVP Head of Partnerships and M&A, Orsted

Guy Newey

Chief Executive Officer, Energy Systems Catapult

Peter Stanley

CEO, Elexon

Dr. Michal Meidan

Head of China Energy Research, Oxford Institute for Energy Studies

Arnaud Jouvin

VP Investments, Brookfield

Julian Jansen

Managing Director - Germany, Fluence

Charlotte Johnson

General Manager - Generation Flex, Kraken

Richard Nourse

Chair of Schroders Capital Infrastructure, Schroders Greencoat

Mortimer Menzel

Managing Partner, Augusta & Co Limited

Lawson Steele

CEO, Haldane Energy

Deepa Venkateswaran

Managing Director, AB Bernstein

Stefan Englberger

Head of Commercial & Investment Analysis, ECO STOR

Laura Sandys

Non-Executive Director, SSE Transmission, Highview Power, Sero Homes & Ohme Global

Alejandro Lopez Delgado

Managing Director Infrastructure, La Caisse

Maud Texier

Global VP - Data Centers and Industrials, Octopus Energy

Tom Glover

UK Country Chair, RWE

Alistair Phillips-Davies

Chairman SSEN Distribution, SSE

Niels Jakeman

Head of Energy Origination Europe, NORD/LB

Adam Wray-Summerson

Technical Sales Director, Clarke Energy

Jose Noldin

CEO, GravitHy

Philip Lewis

Founder & CEO, VaasaETT

Minesh Shah

Managing Director, TRIG, InfraRed Capital Partners

Hanns Koenig

Managing Director, EMEA, Aurora Energy Research

John Feddersen

Founder & CEO, Aurora Energy Research

Dan Monzani

Managing Director, UK & Ireland, and European Hydrogen, Aurora Energy Research

Ana Barillas

Managing Director, Iberia and LATAM, Aurora Energy Research

Richard Howard

Global Research Director, Aurora Energy Research

Alex Esser

Head of Nordics & Baltics, Aurora Energy Research

Matteo Coriglioni

Head of Italy, Aurora Energy Research

Emma Woodward

Principal, Aurora Energy Research

Casimir Lorenz

Managing Director, Central Europe, Aurora Energy Research

Evangelos Gazis

Head of SEE, Aurora Energy Research

Caroline Still

Market Lead - South Africa, Aurora Energy Research

Brian Potskowski

Head of Advisory, UK & Ireland, Aurora Energy Research

Thaddäus Kreisig

Principal, Aurora Energy Research

Agenda

The 2026 programme opened with opening and welcoming remarks, followed by plenary sessions and keynote presentations from global energy and finance leaders exploring geopolitics, system resilience, and investment strategy. New for this year, the Forum hosted an Oxford Union style Aurora Debate. The day also featured a live recording of Aurora’s “Energy Unplugged” podcast, alongside afternoon breakout sessions tackling frontier questions of the transition, from China’s role in European supply chains to market design and financing the next wave of storage and clean technology.

As always, the Forum combined high level discussions with exceptional networking opportunities, including breakfast and lunch sessions, a formal networking dinner, and evening drinks reception, bringing together senior representatives from across Europe’s energy ecosystem in a uniquely collegial setting.

Agenda

08:00

Registration, Breakfast & Networking

08:00 - 09:00

09:00

Welcome and Opening Remarks

09:00 - 09:10

Hanns Koenig

Managing Director, EMEA, Aurora Energy Research

09:15

Aurora Energy Unplugged Live Session

09:15 - 09:45