ENGIE research inaugurates its Lab Crigen center in Stains - France

ENGIE’s CRIGEN Lab is the our Group's corporate research and development (R&D) center. It is located on Urban Valley Campus site, winner of the first edition of “Inventons la Métropole du Grand Paris”. It is the most advanced project in the competition, and won the 2020 MIPIM Award in the "Best futura mega project" category. Initially located in Saint-Denis, ENGIE’s CRIGEN Lab has recently moved to Stains into an eco-designed building. 

The research center comprises 200 researchers representing 11 different nationalities over 50 of which have doctorate degrees and around twenty are undertaking PhDs as high-level specialists in green gases, new energy uses and experts in technologies of the future.

The researchers at ENGIE’s CRIGEN Lab are undertaking operational R&D projects and are developing industrial pilots in France and Europe, the aim being to hone their expertise in low-carbon technologies and help them reach maturity. They are supported by a whole R&D ecosystem (European universities, manufacturers, start-ups, laboratories, etc.), and have testing facilities that are unique in Europe. 

The research work is structured around three main themes: 

• Low-carbon energies and in particular green gases (hydrogen, biogas, etc.)
  
• Intelligent and efficient energy consumption in cities, buildings and industry 4.0
• Emerging technologies essential for the energy transition (artificial intelligence, nanotechnologies, robots and drones, etc.). 

Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, Chairman of the Board and Claire Waysand, interim CEO jointly declared: “In a world in which industrial changes are extremely fast, R&D is essential to maintain our competitiveness. We are convinced that accelerating the transition to a carbon-neutral economy is based on an ambitious Research & Development policy. This investment in our new research center gives our teams the resources they need to invent the solutions of tomorrow".

Research and innovation are at the heart of ENGIE's strategy. ENGIE is an acknowledged player in R&D: 

• €189 million in 2019
• 400 patents filed
• Eight R&D centers in seven countries
• 900 researchers