On 16 October 2025, we will gather experts from research, industry and politics to take stock of progress: Where does the hydrogen economy stand today? And what steps must be taken to ensure that hydrogen and its derivatives become the backbone of a climate-neutral energy system?

The preliminary programme and information on registration can be found on our website.

This report summarises the research results of the LNG2Hydrogen project on the long-term conversion of LNG terminals for hydrogen use and its transport vectors. The analysis shows that multi-use terminals can reduce investment costs in the long term, accelerate approval processes, and enhance operational safety. The report also stresses that technology-neutral and flexible planning is essential to successfully address global energy and climate challenges.

This DVGW course on 7–8 October will provide participants with a comprehensive overview of the regulatory framework for the hydrogen economy. Our colleague Leandra Schulz will contribute her expertise in regulatory affairs.

On 10 September, the CIGRE initiative hosted a webinar on key challenges in transmission grid planning. Leonie Durschang and Simon Großmann from IKEM contributed as experts.

At the Berlin Energy Roundtable on 11 September, we spoke with experts from Megawatt and Green Urban Energy about practical neighbourhood-level solutions for climate-friendly heating networks.

Our conclusion: although there are exceptions, district heating networks are almost always worthwhile at neighbourhood scale. Practical examples from ongoing projects – including the energy concept for the Berlin district at the former Tegel Airport – vividly demonstrated the diverse ways renewable heat sources can be combined.

IKEM was represented at the Association for European Transport’s conference in Antwerp (Belgium) by Abdulghani Al Sabouni. On 17 September, he presented findings from the FAMOUS project on shared solutions for the joint use of workplace charging infrastructure.

At this year’s DVGW Congress on 24 September, IKEM’s Managing Director Susan Wilms spoke about the role of renewable gases in the energy transition. For Wilms, renewable gases are not merely a technological supplement, but essential to climate protection. However, unclear rules and missing infrastructure continue to delay emissions reductions.

On 24 September, IKEM’s Deputy Managing Director Matthias Hartwig joined a panel at the Demo Day of the Forum Digitale Technologien to discuss drivers and transformation pathways for autonomous mobility.

His conclusion: the existing legal framework for autonomous driving is already highly ambitious and provides clear guidance. What is now needed are platforms for exchange between manufacturers, legislators, and regulators to achieve scaling targets while ensuring safety for all road users.

On 25 September 2025, IKEM expert Divy Gupte took part in the closing event of the Hungarian E-CORE project. The event presented the results of the national case study on electric road systems (ERS) in Hungary, examining their interaction with stationary charging infrastructure as well as challenges for the energy and logistics sectors.

Contributions include:

• Moriz Vohrer: Forests, peatlands and consumer communication: permanence as a legal requirement for climate compensation

• Prof. Dr Christian Bickenbach: Prohibitions on deterioration and requirements to balance interests in climate law

• Dr Holger Weiß: Transformation and development of heating networks in Germany – a critical analysis of current legislation

• André Kukuk/Prof. Dr Anne Paschke/Hongfeng Gao/Dr Imke Joormann: RefuelEU Aviation: Regulation between climate protection and carbon leakage

• Ievgeniia Kopytsia: The just path to Belém? Negotiations on the future of the Just Transition Work Programme

• Case law: ICJ 23.07.2025 – Obligations of States in Respect of Climate Change

Are you researching legal aspects of climate change and interested in publishing your work? Contact the editorial team: klimr@ikem.de.

Join the IKEM team! We are currently recruiting:

• Legal trainees
• Interns

We also offer positions for doctoral researchers.

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