Doctoral Student in Battery Storage in Electricity Markets

About the role

The School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at KTH Royal Institute of Technology is hiring a fully funded doctoral student to advance battery energy storage system (BESS) participation in Nordic electricity markets. The project builds optimisation and AI methods for BESS bidding, hedging, and co-optimisation across energy and reserve markets. Supervisors include Prof. Mohammad Reza Hesamzadeh and Prof. György Dán. Preferred start date is autumn 2026. Application deadline: 6 June 2026, midnight CET.

Responsibilities

• Develop mathematical optimisation models for BESS participation in Nordic day-ahead, intraday, and balancing markets (Nord Pool and Svenska kraftnät).
• Design AI-driven strategies for co-optimising energy delivery with frequency containment reserve products.
• Build and validate digital twin models using historical Nordic market and grid data.
• Publish results in peer-reviewed power systems and energy journals.
• Collaborate with international academic and industry partners on the project.
• Contribute to teaching activities for up to 20% of contracted hours.

Requirements

• Master’s degree (or equivalent such as Civilingenjör) in electrical engineering, applied mathematics, or a closely related field.
• Strong skills in mathematical optimisation, including stochastic programming, robust optimisation, or model predictive control.
• Programming experience in Python, MATLAB, Julia, or similar.
• Solid knowledge of electricity market design and power systems.
• Fluent written and spoken English.

Nice to have

• Prior thesis or project work on energy storage or ancillary services markets.
• Experience with Nordic market data sources.
• Familiarity with reinforcement learning or machine learning for sequential decision-making.
• Publications or conference presentations in energy or power systems.

How to apply

Apply through the KTH Varbi portal at the link above. The application must include a CV, personal letter (max two pages), degree transcripts, and the names of up to two references. Submit before 6 June 2026 at midnight CET.