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NEFI expert Tara Esterl wins NIM Award 2024

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by Oxana Schmidt
  • The Austrian winners of the NIM Award were honored at the event "Climate-Ready Industry: Research and Development for the Industry of the Future" in Linz on January 28, 2025. In the picture from left: Sabine Mitter (BMK), Sophie Knöttner (AIT), Tara Esterl (NEFI-New Energy for Industry/AIT), Martin Pischler (RHI Magnesita), Bernhard Gahleitner (AIT), Elvira Lutter (Klima- und Energiefonds).

    © ÖGUT/ Petra Blauensteiner

International recognition for NEFI Expert from AIT Austrian Institute of Technology: Tara Esterl, project lead of the NEFI project Industry4Redispatch, has been honored as the winner in the "Female Innovator" category of the Mission Innovation Net-Zero Industries Awards 2024. The Mission Innovation Net-Zero Industries Award (NIM Award) recognises outstanding companies and individuals who drive industrial decarbonisation with pioneering approaches, highlighting their innovative contributions. The Austrian award winners were presented at the UN Climate Conference in Baku (COP 29) and officially honored on January 28, 2025, at the event "Climate-Resilient Industry: Research and Development for the Future of Industry" in Linz.

Tara Esterl: Winner in the "Female Innovator" Category

Tara Esterl leads the NEFI project Industry4Redispatch (I4RD), which focuses on integrating industrial flexibility into grid management to help balance electricity supply and demand. Her work with major industrial players like voestalpine and Siemens has developed innovative solutions for industrial transformation by allowing energy-intensive industries to offer redispatch services, reducing emissions and improving grid stability. This approach leverages industrial flexibility to accelerate decarbonisation across energy-intensive sectors.

Tara Esterl: "‚I am very delighted to receive the award as Best Innovator, and it encourages me to continue exploring new paths and innovative approaches in the future. Moreover, the Net-Zero Industries Award highlights the significance of our research for a climate-neutral future on an international level and serves as a great recognition of our collective interdisciplinary efforts. My sincere thanks go to my colleagues and project partners—this success would not have been possible without their support."

At AIT, Tara is responsible for the strategic development of the research area Integrated Energy Systems, which play a key role in the energy transition by supporting the decentralisation of energy generation and contributing to the achievement of climate goals.

Award Ceremony in Linz

The Austrian winners of the NIM Awards were honored on January 28, 2025, at the event "Climate-Friendly Industry: Research and Development for the Industry of the Future" in Linz on 28 January 2025. In the "Young Talents" category, Sophie Knöttner (AIT) impressed with her research on industrial energy systems and development pathways for the digitalisation and transformation of the industry. Also awarded was RHI Magnesita for their project "CCUpScale", which reduces CO₂ emissions and develops innovative solutions for the refractory industry.
The award emphasises the importance of research and collaboration for a climate-neutral future.

About the Net-Zero Industries Award

Launched by Mission Innovation, the award has now been presented for the second time and honours ground-breaking innovations worldwide. With over 70 submissions from 26 countries, the award is a platform for outstanding projects and personalities who are driving change in heavy industry.

Net Zero Industries Mission

Mission Innovation (MI) is a global initiative of 23 countries and the European Commission with the aim of accelerating innovation in the field of energy technologies. Seven missions work under the umbrella of the MI, each of which addresses an unresolved challenge in the field of renewable energies. The "Net-Zero Industries" mission is jointly led by Austria and Australia. The first solutions should be commercially available and competitive by 2030. The mission focuses on projects in emission-intensive sectors. Learn more about it here.

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