Residential flexibility is taking off in Flanders. Millions of home batteries, EVs and heat pumps are about to be steered by apps and algorithms. But how, and to whose benefit, is still wide open.
Next in Flex brings the people building and regulating that future together for two days of keynotes, on-stage interviews and panel discussions, with Octopus Energy's Andrew Schein, professor Blake Shaffer and Smappee CEO Stefan Grosjean.
Register now! Attendance* is free, but seats are limited.
* It is no longer possible to register for Day 2. We have reached our maximum capacity. Our apologies!
Unable to access the registration form from your corporate network? Register by using your phone on 4G/5G, or by emailing sam.hamels@ugent.be.
Program
27 October 2026
09.00 - 18.00
INDUSTRY & POLICY DAY
Octopus Energy Centre for Net Zero (UK)
Centre for Net Zero is a non-profit, open energy research institute, established by the Octopus Energy Group.
Andrew Schein is Director of CNZ’s Trials and Analysis team, where he leads field trials and quasi-experimental research with partners across Octopus Energy Group and externally, including Nesta, NESO, and OVO. His work focuses on demand flexibility, decentralized energy, and technology adoption. Previously, Andrew held senior roles at the Behavioural Insights Team and Nesta, and was an early employee at Bulb.
Prof. Blake Shaffer (Canada)
Blake Shaffer is an Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Calgary where he teaches and researches on electricity markets, climate policy, and energy transitions. Shaffer uses empirical methods to evaluate policy effectiveness and better understand consumer and firm behaviour. Shaffer strives to bring rigorous evidence to help policy makers craft better policy.
Stefan Grosjean (BE)
Stefan Grosjean is founder and Group CEO of Smappee. Grosjean shares his decades-long journey in energy innovation and how EV chargers are becoming intelligent tools to reshape home energy use, grid interaction, and climate resilience.
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
PROGRAM
09.00 - 09.20 |
Registration & welcome coffee
09.20 - 10.30 |
Keynote talk: What millions of households actually do: lessons from Britain's biggest flexibility trials
By Andrew Schein, Director of Trials and Analysis team at Octopus Energy Group’s Centre for Net Zero (CNZ)
Presentation: Are we underestimating the need for flexibility? Evidence from Belgium
Distributed generation has already profoundly reshaped the load seen by the power system. Distributed flexibility now has the potential to reshape it again.
Joannes Laveyne, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Energy & Systems Lab, UGent
10.30 - 10.45 |
Coffee break
10.45 - 12.10 |
Presentation: Project results from the InterFlex ETF project
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Which potential for EV smart charging remains when looking at real-world data?
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How do households respond to incentives to more consistently plug-in their EV when arriving home?
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Which lessons can we learn from the residential flexibility scene in other countries?
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How would a flood of stationary battery capacities interact with EV smart charging in the 2030-2040 Belgian electricity landscape?
By Sam Hamels, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher, Department of Economics, UGent
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How can energy cooperatives guide households in the world of dynamic energy contracts?
By Wim Somers, Market Operations manager at Ecopower
Panel discussion: Residential Flexibility - role and vision of energy suppliers
Stijn Walsh
Operations Analyst
Frank Energie
Anne-Françoise Vaessen
Tribe Lead & Asset VP's
ENGIE
Raphael Stulemeyer
Business Developer
Luminus
Tom Defruyt
Innovation Manager
Eneco
Wim Somers
Market Operations
Ecopower
Moderated by Joannes Laveyne, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Energy & Systems Lab, UGent and Sam Hamels, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Department of Economics, UGent
12.10 - 13.00 |
Network lunch
13.00 - 14.20 |
Keynote talk: Effort is the real obstacle: what field experiments say about getting flexibility to work
By Blake Shaffer, Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Calgary (Canada)
On-stage interview of keynote speakers Andrew Schein & Blake Shaffer: Given the latest research, where do we go from here?
By Marten Ovaere, Professor at UGent Department of Economics
14.20 - 14.50 |
Coffee break
14.50 - 16.30 |
Keynote talk: “From Energy Transition to Energy Intelligence”
The energy transition isn't failing because we lack renewable energy, but because our energy system was never designed to manage it intelligently. Drawing on more than three decades of experience, Stefan Grosjean, Founder & CEO of Smappee and Snowball, shares his vision on how flexibility and open energy ecosystems are reshaping the energy landscape. Looking ahead, he explores what the energy system of the future could look like and why intelligence, rather than more energy, will become its most valuable resource.
By Stefan Grosjean, CEO & owner of Smappee
On-stage interview
By Joannes Laveyne, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Energy & Systems Lab, UGent and Sam Hamels, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Department of Economics, UGent
Panel discussion: Residential Flexibility - Diverse perspectives on the state of play and future outlook
Florentijn Degroote
CEO
Powernaut
Kristof De Vos
Manager Flexibility Studies Elia
Michel Verschuere
Managing Director
YUSO
Evert Eriksson
Beleidsmedewerker Energie
Vlaamse Energie- en Klimaatagentschap
Tom Nijsen
Energieke Inspirator
Flux50 & KermtStroomt
Moderated by Sam Hamels, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Department of Economics and Joannes Laveyne, Postdoctoral Energy Researcher at the Energy & Systems Lab, UGent
16.30 - 18.00 |
Network reception
It is no longer possible to register for Day 2. We have reached our maximum capacity. Our apologies!
Unable to access the registration form from your corporate network? Register by using your phone on 4G/5G, or by emailing sam.hamels@ugent.be.
Household electricity demand is more responsive to (price) signals when the response itself is automated, but how much measurable difference does automation make in practice?
Even if we automate responses to signals as much as possible, what is the remaining impact of human behaviour on the flexibility that actually gets delivered day-to-day?
A niche of energy enthusiasts may like a dynamic contract, but how do we get the other 95% of households onboard?
How should roles be divided between the different types of companies in the ecosystem? How should hardware OEM’s, energy suppliers, independent aggregators and software platform providers work together? Who takes the lead? Who is best placed to be the SPOC towards the end consumer?
Which next steps are needed in terms of policy and regulation? Which barriers should we focus on today? Which reforms should be prioritized?
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
Here are some of the questions that will be answered at
Next in Flex 2026!
DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE EVENT?
Feel free to contact us directly via sam.hamels@ugent.be
Next in Flex 2026 is organized by EnerGhentIC, the innovation cluster for sustainable energy at Ghent University.
The event is also supported by Flux50, the membership organization that helps Flanders gain international recognition as a Smart Energy Region.
The event is funded by FPS Economy.
