CIRED (International Community on Electricity Distribution)

Name

CIRED (International Community on Electricity Distribution)

Legal name

AISBL CIRED (Congrès International des Réseaux Electriques de Distribution)

Website

https://cired.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association Services for Electricity Distribution

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Electric Services (4911)

akta.pro primary industry

Conferences & Conventions Operations Services (Registration, AV, Logistics) (MPAGAGAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Choice Aggregators with Distribution Operations (CCA + Wires, where applicable) (EUADABAK)

Keywords

• Electricity distribution conferences
• Power distribution workshops
• Distribution system operators events
• Electrical engineering publications
• Grid knowledge exchange

Headquarters

HQ city

Brussels

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Conference and Workshop Registration Fees: CIRED generates revenue through delegate registration fees for its biennial International Conference & Exhibition and biennial Workshops. Registration tiers include early bird, standard, and late rates. The Seoul 2026 Workshop charges $850-$1,255 for delegates and $715-$985 for PhD/students. The Brussels 2026 Workshop attracted 664 attendees.
2. Exhibition and Sponsorship: Companies can sponsor events and rent exhibition booth space at CIRED conferences. Exhibition rates for Stockholm 2027 range from €590-€1,100 per m2. Sponsorship packages include Gala Evening at Vasa Museum (€55,000), Evening Drinks Reception (€37,500), Coffee Breaks (€12,000 each), and various branding opportunities. Over 140 companies exhibit at main conferences.
3. Publication and Content Access: CIRED produces high-quality proceedings and working group reports that are distributed to attendees and published on digital platforms including IET digital library, IEEE Xplore, IET Inspec, Ei Compendex, and Scopus.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CIRED operates as an international not-for-profit professional association that organises and delivers biennial International Conferences & Exhibitions alternating with topic-focused Workshops for the global electricity distribution community. Its core offering is structured knowledge exchange across six technical tracks (Network Components, Power Quality, Operation, Protection/Control/Automation/Cybersecurity, Planning, and DSO Business), supported by peer-reviewed Working Group reports, Policy Briefs, and Proceedings indexed in major academic databases. Revenue is generated through delegate registration fees, exhibition booth rentals, and event sponsorships.

Product overview

CIRED (International Community on Electricity Distribution) is a not-for-profit international association (AISBL) organized as a community platform offering conferences, workshops, webinars, and publications for electricity distribution professionals. The core offering is the biennial International Conference & Exhibition (upcoming: Stockholm 2027) alternating with topic-focused Workshops (Seoul 2026, Brussels 2026). Supporting products include year-round Webinars, Working Group Reports on specialized topics (flexibility, asset management, storage, smart metering), Policy Briefs & Position Papers, and Proceedings indexed in major academic databases. Technical Sessions structure the content across six domains: Network Components, Power Quality & Safety, Operation, Protection/Control/Automation/Cybersecurity, Planning, and DSO Business. The community is organized through National & Liaison Committees enabling professional participation worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CIRED International Conference & Exhibition Biennial international conference and exhibition for electricity distribution professionals; brings together up to 3,000 experts for peer-reviewed technical sessions across six tracks, networking, and product exhibition. Targeted at distribution utilities, equipment manufacturers, academic researchers, and regulators.
• CIRED Workshops Biennial topic-focused workshops held in alternating years between main conferences, providing deep dives into specific distribution-engineering themes (e.g. resilience, innovation, AI in distribution grids); Brussels 2026 (June, 664 attendees), Seoul 2026 (November). Targeted at the same electricity distribution professional audience as the main conference.
• CIRED Webinars Regular online webinar series providing learning and engagement opportunities on emerging electricity-distribution issues throughout the year, including topics such as Working Group report findings and DSO standards. Targeted at electricity distribution professionals globally.
• Working Group Reports Peer-reviewed technical reports produced by specialised CIRED Working Groups on focused aspects of electricity distribution (flexibility, asset management, remote control, storage, smart metering, dynamic tariffs, network planning). Targeted at utility engineers, regulators and researchers; available via publication catalogue and indexed in IET Digital Library, IEEE Xplore, IET Inspec, Ei Compendex, and Scopus.
• Policy Briefs & Position Papers Strategic publications addressing policy, regulatory and standardisation issues in electricity distribution, including recommendations for DSOs and energy-transition standards. Targeted at regulators, government policymakers, and senior utility management.
• CIRED Conference Proceedings & Special Reports Conference proceedings and special reports documenting all research and innovations presented at CIRED conferences, with peer-reviewed papers indexed in IET Digital Library, IEEE Xplore, IET Inspec, Ei Compendex and Scopus. Targeted at researchers, academics and engineering professionals.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5,200 papers published over the last 10 years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability9 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CIGREcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCIGRE (International Council on Large Electric Systems) is listed as a partner organization on CIRED's website. Both organizations focus on electricity networks and collaborate to advance knowledge sharing in the sector.
• ETIP-SNETcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerETIP-SNET (European Technology and Innovation Platform for Smart Networks for Energy Transition) is listed as a partner organization on CIRED's website. The partnership supports coordination on strategic priorities for energy network innovation.
• ElectronSystemminorGTM or Marketing PartnerElectronSystem is listed as a sponsor for the CIRED 2027 Event App, indicating a marketing partnership for event visibility.
• EnedisminorGTM or Marketing PartnerEnedis is listed as a sponsor for CIRED 2027, providing branded lanyards for delegates.
• AIM (Association des Ingénieurs de Montefiore)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAIM is the founding organization of CIRED. The first CIRED Conference was organized in May 1971 by AIM. AIM continues to co-organize CIRED events, handle registrations, and provide administrative support.
• IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIET Services Limited, a subsidiary of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, serves as the appointed conference organiser for CIRED events. IET provides publishing services including indexing papers on IET digital library, IEEE Xplore, and other platforms.
• Korean National Committee (KNC)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe CIRED Korean National Committee organized the Seoul 2026 Workshop. With over 300 individual and association members, the KNC facilitates regional participation in CIRED activities. Founded in 2006, it became a Directing Member Country in 2019.
• KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corporation)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKEPCO serves as the host organization for the Korean National Committee. Vice President Jung, Chikyo serves as Chairman of the KNC. KEPCO provides support for CIRED workshops in Korea.
• Korea Tourism Organization (KTO)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerKTO is listed as a supporter of the CIRED 2026 Seoul Workshop, providing promotional support for the event.
• Seoul Metropolitan GovernmentminorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Seoul Metropolitan Government is listed as a supporter of the CIRED 2026 Seoul Workshop, indicating municipal support for the event.
• Seoul Bleisure Tourism SquareminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSeoul Bleisure Tourism Square is listed as a supporter of the CIRED 2026 Seoul Workshop, promoting tourism opportunities in conjunction with the event.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CIGRE: International Council on Large Electric Systems, the closest peer to CIRED as a Paris-based international non-profit association that organizes biennial sessions and working groups covering power systems. CIGRE focuses on transmission while CIRED focuses on distribution, but both share the same association model, volunteer-driven working group structure, and global convening role, and CIGRE is explicitly listed as a CIRED partner.
• DistribuTECH: North America's leading transmission and distribution conference and exhibition, run by Clarion Events. It serves a similar audience of utility professionals and equipment vendors and competes with CIRED for both delegates and exhibitor share, particularly in the US market where CIRED has historically been under-represented.
• Enlit: Pan-European energy conference and exhibition series (formerly European Utility Week and POWERGEN Europe) covering the full power value chain including distribution. Comparable in scale, exhibition footprint, and audience overlap with CIRED's flagship conference.
• IEEE Power & Energy Society: Global professional society organizing flagship T&D Conference and Exposition plus IEEE PES General Meeting, both major in-person events for the power distribution community. Overlaps directly with CIRED's six technical sessions (planning, operation, protection, power quality) and competes for utility and academic participation.

Broad incumbents

• EURELECTRIC: Brussels-based association representing the European electricity industry at the policy and regulatory level. Like CIRED, it convenes utilities and engages on DSO policy, but its remit spans generation, transmission, and distribution across all of Europe rather than focusing specifically on technical distribution knowledge exchange.
• Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET): UK-based professional engineering body that serves as CIRED's appointed conference organizer and publisher via IET Services Limited. While not a direct competitor, IET itself organizes power-sector events and publishes in the same energy domain, making it both a strategic partner and a broader-incumbent comparator.
• EERA (European Energy Research Alliance): Alliance of European public research organizations coordinating energy R&D. EERA overlaps with CIRED on convening research communities around distribution topics and is listed as a related ecosystem partner alongside ETIP-SNET in CIRED's network.

Regional players

• CIRED Serbia National Committee: National committee-organized regional conference on electricity distribution in Serbia, part of CIRED's own network. Demonstrates the regional peer model and serves a similar DSO and academic audience within a specific national market.
• CSEE (Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering): Organizer of CICED (China International Conference on Electricity Distribution), the regional counterpart to CIRED in the world's largest single distribution market. CICED 2026 in Guangzhou is explicitly listed as a CIRED-supported event, illustrating the regional peer relationship.

Others

• IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission): Global standards body for electrotechnology including power distribution equipment and systems. While not a conference organizer in CIRED's mold, IEC technical committees shape the same domain (network components, power quality, smart metering) and CIRED working group output is highly complementary to IEC standards work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/CIREDevents
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cired-conference
• Instagraminstagram.com/cired_conference

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CIRED (International Community on Electricity Distribution)