VITO is Belgium’s largest independent R&D organization on sustainable technology covering material management, chemistry, health, land use and energy. In the theme Sustainable Energy, there is a strong focus on Demand-Response enabling activities, covering aspects from flexibility identification and modelling, over advanced nomination and control strategies (transactive energy management, multi-agent systems), to e-market design and multi-actor business case modelling. The energy technology department hosts multi-disciplinary expertise related to electricity networks and heat networks including electrical and heat storage and conversion.

In particular, there is a strong focus on Active Connected Buildings engaging in Flex Trading interactions with each other – forming energy communities – and with energy system stakeholders. Since 2012, VITO is part of the EnergyVille association with the University of Leuven, University of Hasselt, and the R&D centre IMEC. Jointly they focus on Renewable Energy Solutions, Energy Efficiency and Flexibility Management in the built environment.