BRIGHT · Bridging scales for integrated high-resolution modeling of the long-term transition to sector-coupled net-zero energy systems

The rapid growth of solar and wind power, as well as demand electrification technologies, increasingly underscores that successful climate change mitigation strategies will heavily rely on sector-coupled energy systems, in which renewables-dominated electricity is used for previously non-electric end-uses and fuels. Under such sector-coupling, the integration of variable renewable energy (VRE) and demand-side electrification are highly synergistic; cheap VRE makes electrification attractive, while flexibilization of vehicle charging or heat generation reduces reliance on more expensive VRE integration options.Energy modeling tools that inform both policy and the private sector either focus on long-term temporal and spatial scales to understand the transition to climate neutrality (Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs)), or on shorter scales relevant for power system operation, VRE integration and sector coupling (Power System Models (PSM)). However, no single tool captures both scales with high detail, leading to an increasingly critical knowledge gap that results in the risk of misallocation of substantial future investments.BRIGHT will bridge this gap by a first-of-its-kind bidirectional coupling of a global IAM with a PSM, combining the strengths of both. It is organized in five work packages: A method-focused WP1 on establishing the model coupling; three WPs on advanced modeling and analysis of sector transitions in transport (WP2), buildings (WP3), and industry (WP4); and a final WP5 that synthesizes insights to enhance energy transition scenarios for Europe, other major economies, and global Paris-aligned climate change mitigation pathways. BRIGHT will inform climate policy and business on crucial questions such as the cost and achievability of climate stabilization targets, residual fossil emissions, and the role of renewable energy technologies and electrification in competition with structurally conservative mitigation options like CCS, biomass or nuclear.