EMN Smart Electricity Grids | Newsletter Issue 7 | May 2026

A Message from the EMN Smart Electricity Grids

The 2026 metrology calendar highlights a shift towards smarter, resilient energy systems for the European Metrology Network for Smart Electricity Grids (EMN Smart Grids). In May, the 'Ricerca alla Granda' event in Italy will showcase two Metrology Partnership projects – on DC railways transport and instrument transformers respectively. September’s CPEM in Madrid focuses on AI and precision measurement for smart grids. Meanwhile, three new Metrology Partnership projects – GridData, GridForm, and ELITE – are advancing data analytics, renewable stability, and insulation testing. Through global collaborations and the Varenna Summer School, the EMN is ensuring that measurement science remains the bedrock of the green energy transition.

Share your thoughts and collaborate with the EMN Smart Electricity Grids.

'Doing research great', the event 'Ricerca alla Granda', May 2026

An intense week of events will take place in Cuneo (the largest province in Piedmont – Italy, and therefore nicknamed ‘Great’, 'Granda' by locals) between 26 and 29 May 2026. The events will be as follows:

• 26 May morning: Final meeting of the project 'ADMIT – Characterisation of AC and DC MV instrument transformers in extended frequency range up to 150 kHz' – open to partners and stakeholders
• 26 May afternoon: Final meeting of the project 'e-Treny – Metrology support for enhanced energy efficiency in DC transportation systems' – open to partners and stakeholders
• 27 May: Final workshops of the ADMIT and e-Treny projects – open to the to the public
• 28 May: EMN Smart Grids Annual General Meeting
• 29 May: EURAMET Technical Committee for Electricity and Magnetism, Subcommittee Power and Energy meeting

Stay up to date via the event page and register >>

World experts on precision electromagnetic measurements are meeting in Madrid at CPEM 2026 – join us!

CPEM 2026 will take place in Madrid from 6 to 11 September 2026, hosted by the Centro Español de Metrología (CEM). Since 1960, the conference has served as a global platform for scientists, engineers, and industry experts to share advances in measurement techniques, standards, and high-accuracy technologies. The 2026 edition will highlight scientific breakthroughs and address key challenges in areas such as electromagnetic standards, precision instrumentation, and applications in science and industry.
The conference is highly relevant for EMN Smart Grids and digitalised energy systems, bringing together the metrology and power engineering communities to advance electrical measurement. Its programme includes oral and poster sessions, as well as networking opportunities focused on precision measurement across power and energy domains.
For smart grid stakeholders, the emphasis on high-accuracy measurement, calibration, and standardisation is critical to enabling real-time monitoring, interoperability, and control of distributed energy resources. Topics such as power quality, sensors, and data acquisition support grid observability, resilience, and the integration of renewables, contributing to more reliable, efficient, and flexible energy systems.

Programme and more information >>

Three further smart grids R&D projects underway

Set to advance measurement science for smarter, more resilient energy systems, three joint research projects from the 2024 European Partnership on Metrology Call are now underway.

The projects receive funding from the European Partnership on Metrology, co-financed by the European Union Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Programme and from the Participating States.

GridData Project

To ensure the reliable operation of the electricity grid, grid operators must have situational awareness at short time scales and interpret large measurement datasets using data analysis methods, which may be based on AI. The project 'Metrology for reliable grid data analytics' (24DIT05, GridData) is working on the detection of unreliable data and quantification of data quality from power grid sensor networks, the development of simulation models and the construction of a framework to test and validate grid data analytics. The project is running from June 2025 to May 2028 and being coordinated by VSL, the Dutch National Metrology Institute.  

If you are interested in receiving updates from the project and its stakeholder activities, please contact the coordinator Gertjan Kok. 

GridForm Project

The project 'Metrology for efficient grid-forming converters to stabilise future power grids' (24GRD08, GridForm) started in June 2025 and is coordinated by RISE, Sweden's National Metrology Institute. The overall project aim is to improve stability and inertia of electricity grids with significant renewable generation by developing the metrological infrastructure for traceable testing and evaluation of grid-forming converters and their efficiency. The specific objectives are to develop:
i) testbeds for traceable testing and performance evaluation of grid-forming power converters;
ii) laboratory methodologies exploiting the testbeds to assess the functional specifications of grid-forming converters; iii) procedures for efficiency measurements of grid-connected power converters under actual grid operating conditions and iv) traceable methods for on-site testing of grid-forming converters. 

Anyone interested can contact the coordinator Mohammad Kharezy for participation as a stakeholder.

ELITE Project

The 'Metrological Infrastructure for traceable electrical insulation testing for a reliable electricity grid' project (24GRD05, ELITE) addresses the development of measurement techniques, references and calibration capabilities to enable beyond state-of-the-art transient high voltage and high current testing. The project, coordinated by Germany's National Metrology Institute PTB, began in May 2025 and is going to handle the development of metrological infrastructure for traceable measurement and characterisation of testing equipment for electrical insulation and grid components within the next three years. Four technical work packages regarding steep voltage testing, puncture testing, impulse current tests and high current sensors are being worked on by the international metrology community.  

More information is available on the project website >>

EMN Smart Electricity Grids promoted at Varenna Metrology Summer School

The former chair of the EMN Smart Electricity Grids, Gert Rietveld, was invited to present the developments in 'Metrology for Future Electricity Grids' at the Varenna Summer School on Metrology, held in July 2025. This was the 8th international metrology summer school organised by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) and INRiM, the Italian Metrology Institute, where around 50 young metrologists from around the world were trained by experts in the field on recent advances in metrology. In his presentation, Gert Rietveld highlighted some of the challenges defined in the EMN's Strategic Research Agenda, particularly those on metering, grid monitoring and efficiency. The students highly appreciated the significant role that metrology plays in ensuring a sustainable and reliable electricity supply.

European Technology and Innovation Platform Smart Networks for Energy Transition – ETIP SNET

The EMN for Smart Electricity Grids has begun contributing to the European Technology and Innovation Platform for Smart Networks for Energy Transition (ETIP SNET), with a presentation delivered at the ETIP SNET Governing Board meeting held on 5 March 2026 in Brussels. An active collaboration is already in place through the Metrology Partnership project GridData, with further joint activities and contributions on the horizon.

More information on ETIP SNET

International collaboration: GridForm presented at UNIFI general meeting

The EMN Smart Grids Chair, Stefano Lodetti (NPL, UK), introduced the Metrology Partnership project 'Metrology for efficient grid-forming converters to stabilise future power grids' (24GRD08, GridForm) to U.S. experts in grid-forming technology during the Universal Interoperability for Grid-Forming Inverters consortium (UNIFI) General Meeting held at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. 

GridForm aims to develop metrological infrastructure for the testing of grid-forming converters, a key technology for ensuring the stability and resilience of future power networks. While the UNIFI consortium – led by U.S. institutions including NLR – is driving technological innovation in this space, GridForm brings a complementary measurement science perspective, helping to ensure that these technologies can be reliably tested, validated, and deployed. 

This engagement reinforces the role of metrology in supporting the energy transition and the development of next-generation power systems. 

More information about the project Metrology for efficient grid-forming converters to stabilise future power grids >>  

EMN for Smart Electricity Grids Members and Contacts:

Find an overview of Smart Electricity Grids' Members and Contact Persons at the network's website >>

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Disclaimer
Project information and links published in the current issue of the EURAMET newsletter are correct to the best of EURAMET's knowledge and in accordance with the current state of the art. EURAMET cannot be held responsible for the sufficiency or fitness for purpose of any information.The technologies presented in this newsletter may be covered by intellectual property rights.