Ambitions et initiatives structurantes des secteurs de l’énergie et de l’eau en Wallonie

As part of the plenary session of the TWEED & H2O clusters, a major event is being organized to present the ambitions and structuring initiatives of the energy and water sectors in Wallonia. This day will provide an overview of the key sectors involved in the energy transition and water management, highlighting their challenges, ecosystems, value chains, partnerships, and projects.

"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars." The day will revolve around our 12 priority sectors, each encompassing various challenges, ecosystems, value chains, partnerships, and projects.

For each sector, several structuring ideas and proposals will be presented, enabling Wallonia to strategically position itself for a successful transition of the energy and water sectors. These proposals are the result of strategic reflections within the two clusters and are meant to be carried forward by Walloon companies and universities. The aim is to foster a favorable and firm framework to enable the efficient development of future-oriented projects.

Without claiming to offer all the solutions to environmental and climate challenges, these ideas are meant to guide the region and the actions of both clusters in implementing strategic initiatives by 2030, aligned with the sector’s expectations.

An intensive "Energy and Water" programme

The morning will be dedicated to key sectors of the energy transition and cross-cutting energy-water measures, with a focus on the ambitions set for each industry.

At midday (1:00 p.m.), a networking lunch will offer participants from both sectors the opportunity to connect. This will be followed by a plenary session featuring a keynote speech by Bruno Colmant and a brief general meeting presenting new services and action plans from the clusters.

The second half of the afternoon will focus on the water sector.

An inspiring programme with over 20 pitches from key ecosystem players

Throughout the day, we will welcome around twenty representatives from companies, public actors, research institutions, and experts from the energy and water sectors. They will present practical case studies and show how their organizations contribute to these initiatives.

Guest of Honour: Bruno Colmant

During the plenary session, we are honored to welcome Bruno Colmant, who will share his economic perspective on the impact of the energy and environmental sectors in a society facing systemic challenges.

Bruno Colmant holds a Ph.D. in Applied Economics from the Université Libre de Bruxelles and an MBA from Purdue University (USA). A member of the Royal Academy of Belgium, he teaches at several Belgian universities. He has held executive positions at ING, AGEAS, Degroof Petercam, and the Brussels Stock Exchange, where he was President, as well as a member of the New York Stock Exchange’s management committee.

Attend the full day or selected sessions (energy, energy-water, plenary, water) based on your interests.

Programme

09:00 Welcome Coffee 09:30 Introduction - TWEED Cluster 09:45 Ambitions – Energy Sector

• Hydrogen, H2Hub Wallonia (20 min)

  • H2Hub Innovation Hub, e-WallonHY – CRM Group

  • H2Hub connected to neighboring regions and countries – Isabel François, Head of Waterstofnet Industrie Cluster, Belgian Hydrogen Council Program Office

• Storage / Flexibility (20 min)

  • Wallonia Energy Hills – Laurence Gacoin, CEO C-Energy

  • (2nd Life) Battery Wallonia Hub – Grégory Lewis, CIO, Comet Traitements S.A.

• Green Mobility (15 min)

  • Wallonia as a Green H2 Corridor – Stephan Windels, Director Virya H2, Virya Energy

• Energy Sharing, CERACLE (15 min)

  • Peer-to-Peer / PPA / Energy Communities – Joanna Tyrekidis, CEO ukko / Head of Energy Noshaq

• Renewable Energy (20 min)

  • Framework for the development of large-scale photovoltaics in Wallonia – Alex Houtart, Partner, Ether Energy

  • Green gas: biogas and biomethanation – Antoine Mathelot, Project Director, Biogas Hautrage

11:15 Coffee Break

11:45 Cross-cutting ambitions (Energy-Water)

• Green Heat – Heat2Net Wallonia (20 min)

  • Geothermal project development – Benedicta Ronchi, Project Manager, AGT Advanced Groundwater Techniques

  • Tools for Sustainable Heat Networks – Mathieu Depoorter, Co-Founder / CEO Gemelio

• Energy performance & decarbonisation of industry, including the water sector (20 min)

  • Energy Optimis’ER Hub / EC4I - Collective Energy 4 Industry – Tanguy Detroz, Consultant CE4I

  • Water sector towards a Net-Zero-Carbon Economy – Adrien Theunissen, General Manager & Pauline Dijon, Director New Business Ventures, Besix Environment

• Cross-cutting ambitions (20 min)

  • Acceleration zones for renewable energy deployment aligned with infrastructure and industrial sectors (including water) – Christophe Adriaensen, CEO, GIM - smart geo insights

  • Others: Wall4grid / Made In Wallonia / ...

12:45 Conclusion – Dimitri De Weyer, Deputy Chief of Staff to Minister Cécile Neven (Energy, Air Climate Plan, Housing, Airports)

13:00 Networking Lunch

14:00 Plenary session

• 14:00 Formal General Assembly, services & action plans of TWEED & H2O clusters

• 14:30 An economist’s perspective on the impact of energy and environmental sectors in a society facing systemic challenges – Bruno Colmant

15:00 Q&A / Short Break

15:15 Ambitions – Water Sector

• Sustainable Water Management (30 min)

  • Wallonia resilient to extreme weather events – Jurgen Sermijn & Didier Schmitz, Riopro

  • CSRD challenges in water management – Sébastien Yasse, Deplasse & Olivier Moulaert, Aiset - Alteo group

  • Water sobriety & rational use – Aymar de Lichtervelde, Revalio

• Water Circularity – Circular Water Wallonia (20 min)

  • Industrial water reuse and circular management – Gerald Senden & France Schmit, Sense Engineering / Environnement

  • Circular water management in business parks – Maïté Dufrasne, IDEA

• Water Smartisation/Digitalisation (20 min)

  • Quantitative and qualitative data centralisation – Jean-François Deliege & Pol Magermans, Aquapôle, ULiège

  • Digital solutions using smart meter data – Grégory Herman, Hydroscan

• Water Quality / Treatment (10 min)

  • Safe and sustainable access to drinking water – expert center on micropollutants – Stéphane Nonet, Director, Cebedeau

• Expertise / Innovation (15 min)

  • Accelerating innovation in the water sector – SWDE/SPGE

16:50 Conclusion 17:00 Networking Drink 18:00 End

Practical Information

• Date: April 1st, 2025, from 09:00 to 18:00

• Location: Château-Ferme de Profondval, Chemin de Profondval, 2 – 1490 Court-Saint-Etienne

• Registration: Mandatory before March 27 at 12:00 via this form >

• Price: €350 – Free for TWEED and H2O cluster members

Partners: Circularité de l'eau, Circular Water Wallonia Related to this support and guidance initiative: Call for Projects – CE4I