The energy transition requires cross‑border cooperation. That is why more than 300 leaders from the energy and investment sectors met in Essen on 26 and 27 November 2025 for the Tech Tour Energy & Decarbonization 2025 event. The conference brought together more than 60 selected start‑ups and over 140 venture and corporate investors. The Dutch organization Connectr partnered with the German innovation hub BRYCK to advance collaboration between the Netherlands and the Ruhr region.

Tech Tour Brings European Energy Innovators to Essen

The choice of venue is no coincidence: Essen is located in the Ruhr region, which is often referred to as the industrial heart of Germany and has developed into an innovation hub for energy and decarbonisation.

Tobias Grün, Managing Director of BRYCK, explains: “Major energy companies originate from this region and are therefore strongly involved in the efforts that we, as industry and society, are currently undertaking to drive forward the energy transition. What is required is to electrify the majority of energy consumption and thereby decarbonise it. This requires grid expansion, energy storage systems and corresponding production facilities – both in the region and beyond.” To achieve this, a structured approach to innovation is necessary. “We want to establish the right connections, identify the right innovations, the right teams and the right start-ups, and integrate them into the transformation process that is already taking place in the energy sector,” says Grün.

BRYCK, as host of the Tech Tour Energy & Decarbonisation, ensures the connection between energy innovators and investors – with an international orientation. Tobias Grün: “We are offering a European platform here, as the majority of participants are internationally positioned. From an entrepreneurial perspective, we must grow into this international dimension. The Tech Tour in Essen makes it possible to connect regional strengths with the broader European energy ecosystem.”

Connectr: Dutch Partner for the Energy Transition

Connectr from the eastern Netherlands is using the Tech Tour in Essen for strategic networking. The organisation and BRYCK are connected through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and are jointly building a cross-border innovation region in the energy sector.

“We are currently building a relationship between the eastern Netherlands and the Ruhr region,” explains Jeroen Herremans, Managing Director of Connectr. The Tech Tour is ideal because it brings energy technology companies from across Europe to the Ruhr region.

Together with BRYCK, Connectr aims to support companies that are willing to establish a temporary presence in the Netherlands. There, they can further develop their products and then scale into the nearby Ruhr region.

Supporting Market Entry for Energy Start‑ups

According to Tobias Grün of BRYCK, there are often various hurdles that companies encounter in practice when scaling. For potential entrepreneurs, the first major hurdle often consists of turning technology into a product. Tobias Grün explains: “The second major hurdle is actually related to the innovative strength of deeptech itself. Less innovative solutions usually have easier access to the market than brand-new inventions that are based on science or research. As a result, they are often so fundamentally new to the market that it is more difficult for teams to scale.”

At this stage, BRYCK supports teams through proximity to relevant industries in order to enable scaling. “Because the players in this industry are the ones who will apply the new technology in the markets and within their respective technical domains.” Therefore, very early on, collaboration must be established between the technology side—i.e. the start-ups and researchers on the one hand—and the corporate and industry partners on the market side, in order to adapt these technologies and make them functional on a larger scale.

The Eastern Netherlands: Small Structure, Fast Processes

This is made possible in the eastern Netherlands. “Here, hardware start-ups find pilot projects and demonstration sites where they can showcase and further develop their innovations. We have several company sites with a very high level of security,” says Herremans. “Everything in the field of energy technology and energy innovation can be tested there.” These test sites are classified as Category 5 – the highest security level in the Netherlands.

Companies, policymakers, authorities, businesses and scientific institutions work closely together in the Netherlands. “Because the Netherlands is a small country, processes here often move faster,” explains Herremans.

This leads to start-ups finding suitable cooperation partners and investors in a shorter period of time. “We see ourselves as a catalyst in the field of energy technology and energy innovation,” Herremans emphasises.

In the Arnhem region, large companies such as grid operators Alliander and TenneT, as well as engineering firms such as DNV, are based there. They are known worldwide for their energy innovations and implement large-scale projects. Connectr enables start-ups to access these companies as potential pilot customers and test partners.

Plans for 2026: Closer collaboration between Connectr and BRYCK

For 2026, Connectr and BRYCK are planning closer cooperation. Dutch mentors and investors are to become part of the BRYCK Accelerator. Dutch energy start-ups that wish to collaborate with German start-ups will also be included.

A joint visit to E-World on 10 February 2026 in Essen is planned. In addition, Connectr is inviting participants to the Arnhem Electricity Week. In particular, the European New Power Summit on 21 May is open to international guests.

“We want to show Europe that it is possible to work together across borders as a single region,” says Herremans. “Energy technology and energy innovation are at the forefront, as are the interests of entrepreneurs.”