We need excellently trained people and sustained investments into research to boost innovation in science and its quest to find new forward-looking solutions to bolster climate protection, efficiency and the use of renewables. This is the reason we are making more than EUR 100 million available to R&D in the coming years in our international research initiative. We are initiating a host of cooperation projects with international universities.

About EUR 40 million are earmarked for the E.ON Research Center for Energy at Rheinisch Westfälischen Technischen Hochschule (RWTH) Aachen. Establishing this institute in 2006 was and remains a milestone on our way to making the future of energy cleaner, more efficient and safer. Five chairs headed by Professor Rik De Doncker are working on key questions about energy at the newly founded institute: electrical energy generation and storage systems, automation processes in grids, geophysics and geothermics, energy efficiency in buildings as well as the needs and behavioral patterns of energy consumers. These are the issues which are to complement the existing, internationally reputed research being conducted at RWTH Aachen.

Further cooperation initiatives with universities are to push the development of safe, climate-friendly energy technologies. Plans include establishing a new energy and environmental research institute in Great Britain, which will involve E.ON UK.

In cooperation with Technical University Munich, E.ON Energie commends innovative, practical research by presenting the E.ON Future Award. The three best dissertations receive EUR10,000 each and the six best undergraduate theses (diploma, bachelor and masters theses) EUR5,000 each. The theses cover issues including energy, innovation, the future and technology. E.ON Kernkraft in Hanover also cooperates with the local "Freundeskreis Hannover" heritage association to present four up-and-coming scientists with the E.ON Future Award.

Since 2001, E.ON Westfalen Weser has also commended outstanding undergraduate theses on energy-related topics. Submissions are accepted from students of a number of technical colleges, institutes and universities from the region. In 2007, four students were awarded prizes totaling EUR3,500.

Since 2007, E.ON Hungaria has been supporting students with a sponsorship contract with the Budapest University for Economics and Research. E.ON Hungaria offers students scholarships and supports university projects while university graduates will be offered the possibility to get their career started with E.ON Hungaria. We also support the university with the continued development of its high standards.

As the largest single customer for Norwegian natural gas, E.ON Ruhrgas is particularly involved in German-Norwegian academic exchange programs. E.ON Ruhrgas established its scholarships’ fund almost 25 years ago. It is a non-profit trust to promote science and education in conjunction with the Scholarship Association for German Science (Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft). In a joint effort with the Norwegian research council it runs three German-Norwegian scholarship programs (Ruhrgas Scholarships). This allows students, graduates and researchers to study at universities in that respective country. Since funding was put in place more than 1,500 scholarships have been awarded. In 2006, E.ON Ruhrgas made around EUR600,000 available to the program.

For the last 30 years, the E.ON Nordic Research Foundation has supported postgraduates at the Institute of Technology in Lund and the Chalmers Institute of Technology in Gothenburg to the tune of around EUR0.5 million per year. The investment has focused on research into efficiencies in energy conversion as part of the whole energy chain.

Since 2007, E.ON Nordic has also been supporting a chair for business management at the University School of Economics and Management in Lund. Its research should mainly focus on "management of business and organizations in relation to social responsibility, including consequences of the companies' operations for the working situation of the employees, in relation to pluralism, environmental issues and global development". E.ON Nordic will support the chair with EUR0.7 million per year for the next five years.