Plenary Speakers
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Plenary 1
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Joo-ho Whang, Ph.D.
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) Co., Ltd., Korea -
Lecture Title:
Two Pathways to Carbon Neutrality 2050
- Companion of Nuclear and Renewable Energy -
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Joo-ho Whang, Ph.D.
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Hwang Joo-ho, CEO of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, has profound experiences in nuclear power industry throughout his life. He received his PhD degree in nuclear engineering at Georgia Tech in 1986.
He started his career as a professor of nuclear engineering at Kyung Hee University in 1991. He also served on the National Energy Commission until he became CEO of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power in 2022.
In 2010, he served as the 15th president of Korea Institute of Energy Research, (KIER), and also was the 17th president of Korea Society for Energy Engineering. In addition to that, in 2020, he served as chairman of the Nuclear Power Export Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Industry.
He believes proper harmony between nuclear and renewable energy is needed for energy security and carbon neutrality.
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Plenary 2
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Pranab Baruah, Ph.D.
Principal Specialist, Climate Action and Inclusive Development, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Korea -
Lecture Title:
Is Asia Leading the Way in Clean Energy Transition and Climate Mitigation?
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Pranab Baruah, Ph.D.
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Dr. Pranab Baruah is a Principal Specialist at the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), an intergovernmental organization with 45 member countries. Prior to this, Pranab served as the head of GGGI’s Qatar country program, leading a technical cooperation program with the government of Qatar to support its green economy transition efforts.
Over the years, Pranab has led several applied research and government advisory projects on climate change and clean energy transition planning, aimed at supporting developing countries in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, as well as the UK and Japan. He holds a PhD in engineering and an MBA in strategic carbon management and is passionate about the role of policy and technology in the deep decarbonization of the energy system.
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Plenary 3
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Gayathri Nair, Ph.D.
Technology and Infrastructure, The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), Germany -
Lecture Title:
Grid Integration and the Energy Transition to Net Zero
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Gayathri Nair, Ph.D.
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Dr. Gayathri Nair is currently the leading officer for grid integration of renewables at the Technology and Infrastructure Team at the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Under her leadership, IRENA undertakes critial grid assessment studies that serve power system operators worldwide, chartiog a course towards decarbonization through economically viable solutions and forward-looking policy frameworks.
Dr. Nair has led several projects providing technical assistance and capacity building on renewable energy integration into power grids, with specific focus for LDC’s and SIDS and working in close collaboration with key country stakeholders. These support power system operators in developing system specific pathways to decarbonize and modernize their power sector by recommending economically viable, advanced technical solutions and policies that encourage the maximum utilization of existing infrastructure while priorizing renewable generation. She coordinates the creation of grid assessment models and technical documentaon, and develops technical products such as reports, webinars, training programs, and workshops that provide technical guidance to power system operators on how to operate the system with high proportions of variable renewable energy and building resilient power systems.
Dr. Nair leads IRENA participation in in internationally significant initiatives, including the Regulatory Energy Transition Accelerator (RETA), EPRI READi’s initiative on power system resilience, and the International Smart Grid Acon Network (ISGAN).
Dr. Nair has participated in prestigious energy events as a keynote speaker, including Australia Energy Week, Japan’s Future Grids, the 7th Hybrid Power System Workshop, and has contributed her insights as a distinguished panelist at the IEEE Powertech-Special Session on Challenges and Solutions for Islands with Large-Scale Integration of Renewables, EM-Power Europe Utility Knowledge Exchange Sessions, and the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition mentoring program.
With a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the distinguished Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Dr. Nair’s academic credentials underscore her expertise. Her scholarly contributions, comprising nine journal and conference articles, emanate from pioneering research into optimizing storage systems for the seamless integration of renewable energy. Before her tenure at IRENA, Dr. Nair made significant contributions in academia in India, inspiring the next generation of energy leaders.
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Plenary 4
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Zhifeng Wang, Ph.D.
Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China -
Lecture Title:
Solar Seasonal Thermal Storage Technology
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Zhifeng Wang, Ph.D.
- Dr. Zhifeng Wangis a Professor in the Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He obtained his PhD at Tsinghua University in 1993. His research interests mainly focus on the design of solar thermal power generation system, flow and heat transfer issues in high temperature solar heat collectors systems, thermal performance evaluation of solar collectors, solar seasonal thermal storage, solar integrated building technology. He has been granted by Awardee of Ten Thousand Talent Program of China, Awardee of 100 talents program of Chinese Academy of Sciences. He was rated as World’s Top 2% Scientists 2023, has published 200 papers which were cited 3,500 times and rewarded by China Solar Thermal Utilization Outstanding Contribution Award, Excellent doctoral supervisor of Chinese Academy of Sciences and etc. He developed and constructed the China's first solar thermal power generation experimental power station, and created the China Solar Thermal Alliance to promote the technological innovation, industrialization and government support for solar thermal power generation. His achievements including 《DESIGN OF SOLAR THERMAL POWER PLANTS》have been widely applied in concentrating solar thermal power technology and etc.
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Plenary 5 (IEA Special Session)
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Heymi Bahar, Senior Analyst
Renewable Energy Division, International Energy Agency (IEA), France
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Heymi Bahar, Senior Analyst
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Sungjin Oh, Energy Analyst
Energy Efficiency and Inclusive Transition Office, International Energy Agency (IEA), France -
Lecture Title:
Unlocking the Potential of DERs and Demand-side Flexibility with Grid Digitalisation
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Sungjin Oh, Energy Analyst
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