After four years of research and collaboration across Europe, the NEWGEN project reached its final stage with its M48 consortium meeting and Final Results Webinar, held on 23–24 September 2026 in Enschede, the Netherlands, hosted by the University of Twente.
The meeting brought the NEWGEN consortium together for the final time to review the progress and achievements of the project and to discuss the pathway towards further development and industrial uptake of next-generation HVDC cable technologies. The second day culminated in the NEWGEN Project Final Results Webinar, held online on 24 September, bringing together the project’s technical results across all four technical work packages, followed by a dedicated session on exploitation and impact.
NEWGEN M48 final consortium meeting
During the consortium meeting, partners presented the progress and final achievements of the four technical work packages (WPs). The discussions reflected the integrated approach of NEWGEN: from developing novel polypropylene-based insulation materials and additives for space-charge mitigation (WP1), through reliable-by-design cable manufacturing and extrusion (WP2), to pre-fault and condition-monitoring technologies (WP3) and life and reliability models for HVDC cable systems (WP4). These activities were complemented by work on sustainability, exploitation and impact of the project results (WP5).
As part of the programme, the consortium also visited the University of Twente laboratory, giving partners an opportunity to explore the research facilities, learn more about ongoing laboratory activities, and exchange ideas beyond the formal meeting sessions.
NEWGEN Project Final Results Webinar
After the consortium meeting, the NEWGEN project hosted its Final Results Webinar, bringing together researchers, industry representatives, transmission-system stakeholders and other interested experts to present and discuss the project’s key achievements in developing next-generation technologies for reliable and resilient high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission systems.
Held online on 24 September 2026, from 13:00 to 16:30 CET, the webinar attracted 72 participants online, providing an opportunity for the NEWGEN consortium to share its results with a broad audience beyond the project partnership. The event marked the final dissemination activity of NEWGEN, following four years of collaborative research involving 10 partners from five European countries.
The webinar opened with an introduction to the NEWGEN project by Ilkka Rytöluoto, NEWGEN Project Coordinator at VTT, followed by a presentation from Eric Lecomte, Policy Officer at the European Commission, DG ENER, on “Perspectives on the current state and future directions of European transmission grids”.
Following the opening perspectives, the webinar presented the project’s results through four technical sessions, covering the main pillars of NEWGEN’s research and innovation activities. The programme also included a dedicated session on project impact and exploitation.
The sessions covered:
- Novel insulation materials and space-charge mitigation, including polypropylene-based insulation materials and novel additives.
- Reliable-by-design HVDC cable manufacturing, including extrusion technologies, cable prototypes and sustainability assessment.
- Novel pre-fault monitoring solutions, including partial-discharge detection and leakage-current monitoring.
- Tools and models for reliable and resilient HVDC cable systems, including lifetime and reliability modelling.
- Project impact and exploitation, focusing on the further development and uptake of the project’s results.
The webinar provided a comprehensive overview of NEWGEN’s work and achievements across the entire innovation chain—from the development and clean compounding of novel insulation materials and additives, through dielectric characterisation and cable prototyping, to advanced manufacturing solutions, pre-fault and condition-monitoring technologies, and life and reliability modelling for HVDC cable systems. It also highlighted the project’s broader sustainability, impact and exploitation activities, providing an opportunity to discuss how the results can be further developed, validated and transferred towards future industrial applications and demonstrations.
Watch the webinar recording and access the presentations
The NEWGEN consortium would like to sincerely thank all participants, project partners, speakers and stakeholders for joining the final webinar, sharing their expertise and engaging in valuable discussions and knowledge exchange. The event marked an important milestone in the completion of the NEWGEN project, sharing the key results and achievements developed throughout the project and providing an opportunity to reflect on their potential impact beyond the project’s lifetime. Moreover, the webinar highlighted opportunities for continued research, further technological development, validation and scaling, as well as future industrial demonstration and exploitation of the solutions. Together, these efforts can contribute to the further development of reliable and resilient HVDC technologies and support the transition towards a more sustainable, secure and interconnected European energy grids.