+10% Attendance at Rimini Expo Centre. KEY 2026, organised by Italian Exhibition Group, closed on 6th March with results beyond expectations and a 9% increase in foreign attendance. Next edition, 10-12 March 2027
The fourth edition of KEY – The Energy Transition Expo, the event of reference organised by IEG-Italian Exhibition Group on energy transition in Europe, Africa and the Mediterranean basin, came to a close on Friday, 6th March, at Rimini Expo Centre in Italy.
After three intense days featuring a wide range of innovative solutions and technologies for decarbonisation, numerous round tables and institutional and commercial discussions, the event closed with results once again exceeding initial forecasts.
Indeed, KEY 2026 recorded a 10% increase in total attendance with foreign visitors up 9% and a considerable presence of investors.
Key 2026 Beyond Expectations
The 2026 edition of KEY, inaugurated on Wednesday 4th March by Italian Minister of the Environment and Energy Security, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, was an exceptional showcase for industrial and technological expertise from Europe and elsewhere.
In a total exhibition area of 125,000 square meters spread over 24 halls, more than 1,000 exhibiting brands, including 320 from abroad, showcased products and innovations in the event’s seven product sectors: photovoltaics, wind power, hydrogen, energy storage, energy efficiency, e-Mobility, and Sustainable City.
There was also significant international participation with 530 hosted buyers and delegations from 59 countries involved in the show, thanks to the support of the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).
412 accredited journalists from around the world covered the event, contributing their insights and perspectives on clean energy, a dynamic sector that is particularly central to a sustainable future.
International Cooperation with Africa
In addition to showcasing technology, the event spotlighted the promotion of international cooperation with a particular focus on the African continent.
As proof of this commitment, KEY 2026 inaugurated a new thematic area for the first time this year: the Africa Investment HUB, a space specifically for networking and developing business opportunities, which hosted African industry associations from Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, the Ivory Coast, Senegal and South Africa.
In line with Mattei Plan priorities and the continent's growing centrality in the global energy transition and in European energy and industrial policies, the Africa Investment HUB aimed to strengthen cooperation between Italy and Africa by connecting businesses, institutions, and investors in order to foster new synergies. A further two events to promote the continent were organised by Res4Africa, which took place at KEY on 5th and 6th March. The topics were the growing role of photovoltaic systems, wind power and battery storage systems in expanding access to electricity in Africa, strengthening grid resilience, and reducing dependence on diesel generation, and mobilising capital and enhancing innovative financing instruments to support the spread of clean energy across Africa, connecting African and European policymakers, industry leaders, investors, utilities, and development partners.
The Conference Programme and Focal Points at Key 2026
The extensive programme of 160 conferences scheduled during the three days of the event, characterised by high quality and a rigorous scientific approach, reaffirmed KEY's position as one of the most important events in Europe, confirming the diversity and completeness of its exhibition and content offering, which makes it unique among European trade shows on the same theme. An open and strategic forum for discussion, where international expertise, data, know-how and best practices were shared and systematized with the aim of accelerating the energy transition.
Among the many topics discussed were the importance of energy efficiency for decarbonisation, energy storage and the use of artificial intelligence to optimise electricity grids, predict energy production from renewable sources, and manage energy flows in real time.
A significant focus was placed on finance, new financial and investment models, capital allocated to renewable energy projects, and innovative tools for controlling energy costs. These included new forms of financing, green bonds, sustainable project bonds and participatory models involving citizens, businesses and communities. KEY 2026 therefore strengthened its position as an international hub and a privileged meeting point for every player involved in the transition by converging technological innovation and the dynamics of finance. Engineers, technology developers, investors and institutions gathered in Rimini to discuss highly topical issues such as the need to make renewable projects bankable and accelerate their implementation while reducing risk.
The associations and industries present also reiterated the urgent need to increase grid flexibility and adopt clear rules to encourage investment and competitiveness.
The Show’s New Layout
New features at the KEY 2026 exhibition project included an entire hall specifically for the world of EPC Contractors (Engineering, Procurement & Construction), banks and finance as part of the vast thematic area on solar energy. At the same time, the wind energy sector, which is experiencing significant growth, included the exhibition focus Su.port – Sustainable Ports for Energy Transition on the electrification of port docks for the sustainability of the maritime sector and on ports as logistics hubs for the assembly and maintenance of floating renewable energy parks, and for hydrogen storage and transportation.
In the energy efficiency area, an ever-present pillar of KEY that, once again this year, played a central role with its transversal vision embracing all sectors, from industry — including energy-intensive industries — to the residential sector and, in general, the built environment, also saw an additional new project: HOME — Healthy, Optimized, Measured, Efficient. The area featured a reproduction of a 100% smart, efficient and sustainable house erected as an educational and cultural space where visitors and operators could discover how healthy and energy-efficient buildings are designed, built and measured.
Innovation and Green Skills for the Future
Technological innovation and increasingly sought sustainable skills were the focus of the Innovation District, an area entirely dedicated to the innovation ecosystem within Hall D4. Here, 32 innovative Italian and international start-ups and SMEs had the opportunity to showcase their most promising innovations and projects by taking part in one of Europe's most important events on the future of energy. At the same time, the Green Jobs&Skills initiative played a crucial role in fostering dialogue and direct encounters between the demand for green skills and job offers in a sector which, according to the IEA-International Energy Agency's World Energy Employment 2025, is growing at twice the rate of the overall economy, but at the same time, is still not keeping pace with new demands due to a shortage of newly qualified workers.
The evening of 4th March saw the prize-giving ceremony of the Lorenzo Cagnoni Innovation Awards, one for each of the seven product categories in the Expo Centre halls, given to the seven KEY start-ups with the highest innovative potential and the seven companies exhibiting at the event that stood out for their cutting-edge approach.
Dpe - International Electricity Expo
In conjunction with KEY, a new appointment with DPE - International Electricity Expo, the event specifically for the electrical generation, transmission, distribution, safety and automation ecosystem, was also back this year. The event was organised by Italian Exhibition Group in collaboration with the Distributed Generation Association – Motors, Components, Generating Sets, a confederate of ANIMA Confindustria, and Federazione ANIE – which represents companies operating in the electrical engineering and electronics supply chains and industrial general contractors within the Confindustria system.
Key Choice - Unlock the Future of PPAs
Lastly, on Tuesday 3rd March at Rimini’s Palacongressi Conference Centre, KEY was preceded by a successful new edition of KEY CHOICE - Unlock the future of PPAs, KEY - The Energy Transition Expo’s B2B event, organised by Italian Exhibition Group in collaboration with Elemens. The event spotlighted Power Purchase Agreements by bringing together energy-intensive companies, renewable energy producers and project developers, energy sector traders and institutions to stimulate discussion and qualified networking between supply and demand and interaction between the parties with the aim of encouraging new agreements and spreading greater awareness on the contractual, regulatory and financial aspects of Power Purchase Agreements.
Appointment with Key 2027
After the record results of the 2026 edition, KEY is already racing towards 2027. Indeed, until 15th May 2026, exhibitors can confirm their exhibition area for 2027 at a discounted rate and request a free quote by filling out the form at the following link.