The smarter E Europe announces award winners

The prize is a chance for the winning businesses to raise their status and receive international recognition. Their solutions focus on the current trends and challenges of the energy transition. Large amounts of renewable energy need to be integrated intelligently into existing infrastructure. And above all else, the energy transition is a global endeavour – this is shown by the five award categories. Three businesses in each category will receive The smarter E AWARD 2026.

Winners in the Photovoltaics category

• Goldbeck Solar I HeliomatiX: HeliomatiX is an automated construction system for large-scale photovoltaics installations. It combines a preassembled plant, autonomous transport vehicles and a robotic mounting system, which can reduce the labour required on site by up to 85%. The panel recognises the impressive innovation at the system level and the added value it brings.
• Huawei Technologies I Smart-String-Inverter SUN2000-506KTL: The extraordinary high-performance solar string inverter has a power density of almost 1.5 MW/m³. In large scale PV plants it produces 506 kW AC and has a maximum efficiency of over 99%. The panelists commended the outstanding power density, the efficiency curve and the resource-conserving design.
• IED Electronics Solutions I True Wind: True Wind is an intelligent wind monitoring and security system for horizontal single-axis PV tracking systems. Instead of relying on external wind data, it measures the vibrations and torsions of each tracking system and rotates the entire PV system during strong winds. This reduces yield losses and prevents damage.

Winners in the Energy Storage category

• International Power Supply I EXERON CheckMate: EXERON CheckMate is a bidirectional inverter for supply scale battery energy storage systems (BESS). It comes in two variants which both offer a power density of 3.3 MW/m³. The panel commended CheckMate’s impressive power electronics, environmental footprint and grid-forming capabilities.
• PHENOGY I PHENOGY 1-Series: PHENOGY 1.0 und PHENOGY 1.1: The PHENOGY 1 series is a sodium-ion BESS and marks a new milestone in battery technology. The batteries are more environment-friendly because they do not contain lithium or graphite. Their higher temperature stability and cooling system ensure safer operation and over 10 000 complete charging cycles. A pilot system came into operation in 2025 in Bremen, the largest of its kind in Europe.
• Sungrow Power Supply I PowerTitan 3.0: PowerTitan 3.0 is a containerised BESS for large scale use. Every 20 ft unit provides over 1.87 MW PCS and 7.14 MWh of lithium-ion batteries. The panel praised the 92% round-trip efficiency, price-performance ratio and the grid stability functions.

Winners in the E-Mobility category

• HagerEnergy I Bidirectional EV Charger edsn: The bidirectional EV charger edsn is a V2G-capable DC charging device. It uses OCPP and Modbus to form an important interface between the household power supply, electric vehicle and electricity market. Car batteries store solar energy and can supply an entire house with power, also when in grid backup mode. The panel applauds the EV charger’s simple design, its broad compatibility and support for low carbon mobility.
• LEM International I DCES-Series: The DCES series is a DC energy meter for fast charging and megawatt charging systems. It offers a simple plug and play installation, wireless monitoring and precise billing in kilowatt hours. It works especially well for the fast charging of electric trucks and meets the demand for charging solutions. Furthermore, it ensures reliable data protection for end users.
• Tritium Power Solutions I TRI-FLEX: TRI-FLEX is a modular fast-charging system with DC-coupled BESS integration. Each scalable TRI-FLEX platform can supply up to 3.2 MW DC and charge 64 electric vehicles at the same time. It is ideal for company fleets and public charging centres and stands out as an intelligent, flexible, future-proof charging solution.

Winners of the Smart Integrated Energy category

• Meins I CSET: CSET is an ultracompact high voltage station for smart grids, solar and wind energy and BESS. It is made up of an electric switchgear on the inside, an external transformer and wireless monitoring for predictive maintenance. The panelists praised the innovative and cost-effective CSET for industrialising the grid connection and advancing the energy transition.
• Stem I PowerTrack Energy Management System (EMS): Stem PowerTrack is an edge-to-cloud energy management system for large scale PV plants, energy storage and hybrid plants. The integrated platform combines energy monitoring with grid-conforming power plant controllers. The panel were impressed by the holistic design, the 99.99% uptime, cybersecurity measures, the low latency and the broad market potential.
• The Mobility House Energy I V2G Flex-Platform – Connecting Energy and Cars: The V2G Flex Platform brings electric vehicles, bidirectional charging devices, utility companies and energy markets together into one software ecosystem. With smart and V2G charging, users can generate revenue while supporting the power grid, allowing consumers to play an active role in the energy transition.

Winners in the Outstanding Projects category

• Fluence I DTEK – Fluence Energy Storage Portfolio in Ukraine: The Russian invasion of Ukraine triggered an energy crisis, which lead to an increased demand for decentralised energy sources across Europe. Working together with utility company DTEK, Fluence remotely brought six decentralised, utility scale BESS plants into operation, which can provide 600 000 households with emergency electricity. The project shows how decentralised BESS plants can provide energy security.
• Schoonschip I Schoonschip VPP: Schoonschip is an energy community in the North of Amsterdam. The decentralised microgrid with 46 housing units uses solar energy, battery storage and water heat pumps, optimises self-consumption, uses day-ahead prices and offers up to 80 kW of flexibility. The panel praised the elegant design, the potential for urban consolidation, the ecological advantages and the measurable social value.
• SMA Altenso I Africa's First Fully Integrated Green Hydrogen Plant: In Namibia, SMA Altenso contributed to creating Africa’s first solar-operated plant for green hydrogen. It combines a large PV system, a 5.9 MWh battery storage system and a 5 MW electrolyser. The hydrogen is used on site for dual-fuel trucks, buses, power generators, and soon for a locomotive engine. The panel described the project as a glowing example of a sustainable energy ecosystem.

 

 

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global's Spring 2026 issue

The first issue of 2026 is here! The Spring issue starts with a report about price cannibalisation, and the effects on the renewable energy industry before moving on to articles on topics including electrical infrastructure, solar optimisation, and site surveys and mapping, with contributors from industry leaders such as CESI SpA, APEM Group, North Star, and more – don’t miss out!