CIGRE PARIS 2026

THE LEADING BIENNIAL INTERNATIONAL GATHERING AND COLLABORATIVE KNOWLEDGE SHARING EVENT FOR THE POWER SYSTEMS SECTOR

The CIGRE Paris 2026 Session started in typical French fashion. A “le petite dejeuner” consisting of coffee, fresh orange juice and a croissant, butter and fruit jam, at the Palais de Congress for breakfast, before the line-up for registration, the required badges and access to the venue, the exhibitions and working groups.

The excitement had been clearly visible. It could be felt and observed. The registration queue had become a minor event by itself, an opportunity to meet and greet former industry colleagues, business associates and contacts. More importantly to engage with new contacts. Faces lit up as eyes met across the aisles, arms outstretched and waving, the latest industry gossip quickly exchanged, all whilst participants, exhibitors and visitors waited their turn to be issued their badges and event accreditations and ushered into the venue.

Focusing on the power systems challenges of today.

It set the tone for the week to come. Networking, technical work groups and discussions, new partnerships, product innovations, technology and new product launch announcements, company introductions, business meetings and to some lucky few, the opportunity for some shopping and the experience to sample some French gastronomic delights. Not to forget the exceptional wines.  

The CIGRE 2026 Session held the promise of being bigger and better than preceding events. It exceeded the promise. It lived up to expectations from start to finish. It turned out to be an all-time-breaking attendance event.

The event is hosted in Paris every second year. The 2026 Session was hosted from 23 to 28 August 2026, kicked off with the traditional opening address delivered by CIGRE President, Professor Konstantin Papailou, on the Sunday before the exhibition started. The inauguration speeches touched on some key issues, among others the need not only to meet the challenges of the energy transition by turning challenges into opportunities, but also to make the transition affordable. A key point politicians and policymakers often fail to adequately address.

CIGRE President, Professor Konstantin Papailou. The courage to talk about the affordability of the energy transition.

The 5-day event saw exhibitors, visitors and conference delegates from all industry sectors convene on what many would consider the most significant technical event on the European conference and exhibition calendar. It covered topics from grid integration, digital substations and grid expansion, predictive asset management, equipment, material and component shortages, alternative insulating technologies, product innovation to data center demand and sustainability.

Bigger. More significant. Powerful.

CIGRE 2026 saw massive growth and a surge not only in overall power industry participants and attendance, but also in the volume of technical papers. More than 15,000 participants from more than 90 countries had been registered. 5,500 nominated technical delegates attended. 1,400 technical papers had been presented and discussed in working groups. The ability to get a technical CIGRE paper submitted for presentation is becoming extremely competitive with submissions graded on topic, substance, innovativeness, research, technical contribution and the ability to contribute to the industry before being approved and allocated a slot.

CIGRE 2026 saw massive growth and a surge not only in overall power industry participants and attendance, but also in the volume of technical papers.

Media prominence. Building and strengthening the power systems brand.

The APC MEDIA relationship and partnership with CIGRE has also grown in significance this year. Their CIGRE 2026 exhibition and interview stand had not only been prominent and well located but their interviews and interaction with Power System executives, engineers and numerous board leadership members ensured recognition and praised from all quarters. Interviews with the CIGRE executive team ensured valuable insights into CIGRE, their role, vision, priorities and their programs. Their leadership and work within CIGRE are clearly visible. These interviews are highlighted on the other APC Media platforms as well.

The Coming of Age. CIGRE as a Meaningful Exhibition

While CIGRE Paris had always been considered the premium technical conference in Europe, the exhibition, traditionally hosted in conjunction with the conference, has also significantly grown in stature and significance. More than 330 exhibitors, representing grid operators, utilities, transformer original equipment manufacturers, transformer component manufacturers, asset management and monitoring, and oil and gas companies and interests had been at the ready to engage visitors. The exhibition halls had been oversubscribed and the interest for 2028 is of such a nature that the majority of 2028 exhibition space is already reserved, booked and confirmed.

What makes CIGRE significant

What makes CIGRE such an important event? Is it Paris, the host city, the Palais de Congress venue, the French food, the French architecture, history and tradition or the 105-year-old CIGRE legacy? Is it the convergence of the brightest technical and engineering minds representing various sectors of the power systems world, the opportunity to introduce innovation and new products, the commercial opportunities, the media opportunities or the networking? The CIGRE motivation and significance may be different for each participant, visitor, delegate, exhibitor or attendee. To many of the transformer technocrats, it may be a combination of factors, not just the mere fact that CIGRE had been established 105 years ago, but the link to both the IEC and IEEE, and the leading international gathering for collaborative knowledge sharing in the power systems world and the rest is an optional benefit.

leading international gathering for collaborative knowledge sharing in the power systems world and the rest is an optional benefit.

The truth, however, may not be singular in nature and may lie somewhere in between the technical work groups, the gathering of similar-minded people, the exchange of insight, knowledge, research and ideas, the networking, the commercial potential of exhibiting, and then, of course France, and indeed Paris.

The forthcoming CIGRE Paris Session 2028 is scheduled to take place from Sunday, the 27th of August to Friday, September 1, 2028.

---

Chris Gerber is a former Transformer OEM CEO with noticeable experience in the transformer industry having worked for some of the most significant independent transformer companies in Europe. He has worked for and with some of the most noticeable transformer utilities in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. He currently consults, specializing in strategy, business development, mergers and acquisitions, and IP transfers. 

His experience in Mergers & Acquisitions is well recognized and he has been conducting and published M&A research on transformers ensuring unique insights into this specialized field. He is the Managing Partner and founder of GENESISS as well as GENCON Consulting and a member of various executive boards as a Non- Executive Director.