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AGH University one of the winners of the GOSPOSTRATEG competition

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AGH University one of the winners of the GOSPOSTRATEG competition
research and science cooperation

The AGH University of Krakow will receive funding to implement a big-budget project as part of the GOSPOSTRATEG competition (Poland’s socioeconomic development amid globalising markets) financed by the National Centre for Research and Development. The highest score among the projects evaluated and more than PLN 7.5 million went to a project related to an energy transformation observatory as an instrument to support the socioeconomic development of Poland.

The project will be carried out by a consortium comprising: the AGH University of Krakow, the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology (MRiT), and the National Centre for Nuclear Research (NCBJ). The primary goal of the project is to establish the Energy Transformation Observatory (ETO) – an instrument that will support optimal decision making in the area of energy transformation. The justification for allocating money for this particular project reads, among other things, that its results exhibit substantial implementation potential considering the fact that the solution developed is scalable, as it can be used both by decision makers on national and local levels, as well as private persons, that is, individual households.

Professor Jerzy Lis, AGH University Rector, explains:

‘The idea of an ETO, unique on a European scale, answers the needs and demands of transformation stakeholders – entrepreneurs, local government units, local energy initiatives, and all concerned citizens. The fact that the AGH University of Krakow, the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology, and the National Centre for Nuclear Research will carry out the project together is a huge distinction. I am convinced that such tools will constitute significant support and will increase the power security of Poland’.

Dr hab. Łukasz Lach, Associate Professor at the AGH University, subject-matter project leader, says:

‘Our goal is to create an advanced instrument to support making optimal decisions under the conditions of fast-paced changes occurring in the global and Polish energy sectors. The chief task of the ETO will be to comprehensively monitor the status of energy transformation, model and analyse the effects of implemented solutions, and suggest directions and activities, especially in aspects related to the economy, climate, environment, society, and technology’.

The ETO, as an advanced and precise analytical tool, as well as a repository of reliable data, will facilitate the cost and benefit assessment related to the implementation of power technologies. As a result, entities focused on implementing the development policy will receive tools to allow them to make plans and take actions based on objective and impartial criteria.

‘We believe that the use of high-class analytical tools created within the project can significantly help reduce the costs of the energy transformation’, adds Dr Łukasz Lach.

Dr Sławomir Kopeć, project leader on the part of the AGH University, highlights:

‘This huge success of the AGH University in the GOSPOSTRATEG competition stems largely from the previous experience of this university in implementing research and development projects in the area of power engineering, including the KlastER project in which the AGH University was also joined by the MRiT and the NCBJ. In addition to the indisputable significance of the results, the implementation of the KlastER project brought distributed energy experts and decision makers to the AGH University environment’.

The economic and environmental benefits derived from the use of the results of this project include the optimisation of the decisions made, especially with planning activities at various levels of public administration. Moreover, the ETO will be useful for monitoring the actual state of the energy transformation or for forecasting the coming changes. Additionally, the set of tools developed will allow the recipients to individually assess the solutions applied.

The expected result of the project will be the creation of a tool called the Energy Transformation Observatory, the use of which will markedly improve decision-making processes and provide better quality thereof. Therefore, the ETO will provide services not only to the central administration and representatives of the energy sector, but also to all citizens interested in the issue of energy transformation in Poland.

The AGH University will lead the newly established consortium, and the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology will be the implementing entity.

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This was the ninth edition of the GOSPOSTRATEG competition. It comprised four thematic areas: middle income and average product trap, an imbalance trap, demographic trap, and institutional weakness trap. Within the proposed areas, the winners will implement research and development projects that are meant to bring real and quantifiable benefits to society until 2028. The results of the projects shall be the development and creation of innovative solutions that can be applied to everyday social and economic life in Poland. The mandatory participation in consortia of scientific units and partners obliged to implement the results of the project (enterprises, public institutions, central and local administration, third-sector organisations) will stimulate the increase of innovation and competitiveness of the Polish society and economy. The long-term effect of the programme implies an increase in social capital and a broadened inclusion of Poles in multifarious forms of public activity. As a consequence, important reserves of social energy and agency will be unlocked, which, in turn, will allow Polish citizens to actively influence the process of improving the quality of their lives and the economic condition of the country.

As part of the GOSPOSTRATEG competition, the National Centre for Research and Development provides financial support across all the stages of the project: starting from fundamental work, through industrial research and development work (phase A), to the obligatory pre-implementation procedure (phase B).

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