I cherish the coasts of southern Spain and, in particular, those of the Strait of Gibraltar. This is a place that has nothing to envy to the Caribbean in terms of maritime life and the quality of beaches and coastal water.

For this weeks Who’s Who, we stay in Spain where we talk with the Manager of WP5, Jose Luis Martinez Ramos.

Jose, tell us about yourself!

I was born in 1964 in Spain, in a city called Dos Hermanadas where I still live today.

I have studied Industrial Engineering at the University of Seville where I received my major degree in Electrical Engineering in 1988 and my PhD in Engineering in 1994. I have joined the Department of Electrical Engineering of the University of Sevilla in 1990 and I am currently still working there as Full Professor.

I also served as Director of the School of Engineering of the University of Seville from October 2010 to January 2015 and as Director of the Industrial Engineering graduate and postgraduate programs from 2015 until 2018.

My research interests include power system operation and planning, integration of renewable energies in power systems, design and control of microgrids and islanded power systems. I am co-author of five books and in the course of my academic career, I have co-authored over 50 papers in research journals and more than 70 papers at international conferences.

Besides my job as Professor, I am very active in R&D activities with electrical utilities including the main generation, transmission and distribution companies of the Spanish Power System.

I am also a Senior Member of the IEEE and member of the Professional Association of Industrial Engineers of Western Andalucia.

As far as my hobbies are concerned, I loved to play basketball when I was a young boyl, but I had to stop practicing it because of an accident. Despite of the fact that I couldn’t play anymore myself, I managed to obtain the title of basketball coach and found a great deal of pleasure by working as coach for male and female teams for many years.

Furthermore, I have practiced scuba diving for more than twenty years. I am currently in search for more relaxing leisure time activities and have recently started sailing.

How did you get involved with EASY-RES and what are your responsibilities within the project?

I have naturally been involved with the project since it’s beginning because I was part of the research team which originally put forth the proposal. Sometime later, I started to take care of the management of WP 5.

What are the objectives of work package 5?

In this work package we are trying to develop market opportunities and a business model for all the stakeholders that are involved in the EASY-RES project. The business model is based on the trading of Ancillary Services that can be offered by the functionalities and algorithms developed in the project.

Additionally, we are trying to identify obstacles for the introduction of the Ancillary Services. Further appropriate modifications will be suggested in the near future.

What do you think is the biggest challenge of EASY-RES?

We have to find a way to incorporate the tools that are being developed in the different WPs into the daily practice of the distribution companies. In order to do so, we have to go beyond the laboratory prototypes and reach the electrical networks.

Given the conservative nature of the design and operation of electrical networks, this is not an easy task. This matter of fact is, though, justified by the need to provide a reliable supply to end customers.

What would you do if you had a year off?

I would like to retire to a nice place on the coast and I use the free time to just relax and maybe write another book.

What is your favourite place?

I cherish the coasts of southern Spain and, in particular, those of the Strait of Gibraltar. This is a place that has nothing to envy to the Caribbean in terms of maritime life and the quality of beaches and coastal water.