Biography

Prof. João Soares is a senior research professor at GECAD (ISEP/P.Porto) and earned his PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from UTAD in 2017. Since completing his PhD, he has successfully secured funding for several projects, including CENERGETIC (as Principal Investigator) and BENEFICE (as Co-Principal Investigator). He also held a junior researcher position in 2018 and an auxiliary researcher position since 2022.

His work on CENERGETIC has fostered international collaborations, notably with São Paulo State University (UNESP), focusing on the operation and planning of electrical energy systems with renewable generation and electric vehicles. Dr. Soares has established partnerships with various international institutions, including Honda Research Institute Europe, enhancing partnerships with private industry research. He has also collaborated with CHARUSAT (India) and Centrale Lille (France), where he has engaged in research activities and competitions. His role as a visiting professor at Centrale Lille since 2019 has further enriched his international research and teaching experience.

He has participated in over 30 national and international projects, serving as PI in 9 of them, including Horizon/H2020 initiatives. His leadership in CENERGETIC has led to significant advancements in energy resource management, particularly in local energy markets and electric vehicles. Recently, he secured four private contracts for R&D projects related to energy communities and electric vehicles.

Dr. Soares has published over 250 scientific articles, and has received over 6000 citations, achieving an h-index of 42. He has contributed to the scientific community through editorial roles, launching 16 special issues in JCR journals and reviewing over 350 papers.

He has been actively involved in teaching at ISEP, UNESP, and Centrale Lille, covering topics like electric mobility and smart grids. Over the past five years, he has managed a team of 7 researchers and supervised numerous students, including 9 PhD candidates and 23 MSc students.

Prof. Joao Soares has received various awards and has been appointed chair of the IEEE ISATC Task Force on Computational Intelligence for the Energy Domain, as well as Secretary of the IEEE PES Intelligent Systems Subcommittee. He has organized over 30 events, including international competitions and workshops, and has been invited to deliver talks at numerous conferences.