Another INESC TEC researcher has been elevated to IEEE Fellow – one of the most prestigious recognitions in the field of engineering. The distinction was awarded to Ricardo Bessa, a researcher at INESC TEC, where he leads the Energy Systems area, for his “contributions to renewable energy forecasting and its integration in decision-support tools,” as stated in the note sent by Kathleen A. Kramer, IEEE President and CEO.
According to Ricardo Bessa, “Portugal’s investment in renewable energy, launched more than two decades ago, created opportunities and posed challenges for the development of new methodologies and tools capable of addressing its variability and uncertainty. In 2006, at INESC TEC, I had the opportunity to contribute to this effort by developing science that supported the integration of renewable generation into the energy system.”
The researcher’s work has been fundamental not only for INESC TEC but also for the electricity sector, by contributing new solutions with transformative potential regarding renewable energy – and its integration into energy systems – at an international level.
“The recognition of our colleague Ricardo Bessa as an IEEE Fellow is highly prestigious and entirely deserved. It results from an individual trajectory of remarkable calibre and consistency, marked by vision, scientific rigour and the ability to create impactful solutions. For us at INESC TEC, it also confirms the scientific excellence we cultivate, the real-world impact we strive for in critical areas for the future, and the international visibility of the work developed from Portugal with rigour, ambition and a sense of public mission,” highlights João Claro, Chair of the Board of Directors of INESC TEC.
The grade of Fellow is awarded to senior IEEE members with an outstanding record of accomplishments in the organisation’s fields of interest. In this case, as noted, Ricardo Bessa’s achievements relate to the energy systems area in general, and more specifically to renewable energy forecasting and Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools. The IEEE Fellow grade is the highest distinction of the association and is recognised as a prestigious honour and an important milestone in a scientific career.
Ricardo Bessa’s appointment takes effect on 1 January 2026. Every year, fewer than 0.1% of voting IEEE members are elevated to Fellow status, illustrating just how selective this distinction is.
Still according to the newly appointed IEEE Fellow, “at a time when science faces a ‘strange’ existential dilemma, marked by doubts surrounding its relevance for the economy, it becomes even more important to value work and professional paths that, in many ways, have generated impact and have been internationally recognised by the scientific community.”
Ricardo Bessa has been a researcher at INESC TEC since 2006. He has participated in more than 50 European and national projects and published over 200 articles. He completed his PhD with distinction in 2013 at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), within the Doctoral Programme in Sustainable Energy Systems – an institution where, moreover, in November 2025, he successfully completed his habilitation examinations. Ricardo Bessa has been attributed three provisional patent applications and was behind the founding of the spin-off company Prewind in 2010. His work has already been recognised with the ESIG (Energy Systems Integration Group) Excellence Award, also for his contributions to renewable energy forecasting.
Ricardo Bessa now joins INESC TEC researchers João Abel Peças Lopes, João Gama and Vladimiro Miranda, who had also previously achieved the distinction of IEEE Fellow.
About IEEE
IEEE is the world’s leading professional organisation dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity. It has more than 500,000 members in 190 countries and is a global leader in the fields of electrical engineering, computing and related areas. The organisation publishes approximately one-third of the world’s technical literature in these domains and maintains an active portfolio of more than a thousand standards.
Worldwide, IEEE also sponsors more than 2,000 conferences each year. More information is available here.
Disclaimer
This article was translated from Portuguese into British English using ChatGPT.
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