Carlos Bordons Alba, Professor of Systems Engineering and Automation at the Higher Technical School of Engineering of the University of Seville, has been awarded the National Automation Prize, the highest distinction awarded by the Spanish Committee of Automation (CEA), "for his contributions to Model-Based Predictive Control and its application to renewable energy systems and microgrids, as well as his career in research, training of researchers and technology transfer.".

This award is given to members of the scientific community who work in the field of Automation in recognition of the merits achieved throughout their academic, research and professional career.

The award was presented by the president of the National Committee of Automatic Control, José Manuel Andújar Márquez, who is also a professor of Systems Engineering and Automatic Control at the University of Huelva, at an event that took place during the National Days of Automatic Control, recently held in Córdoba. 

Bordons Alba is a founding member of the ENGREEN Unit of Excellence – the Engineering Laboratory for Energy and Environmental Sustainability – at the University of Seville, a visiting professor at the University of Technology Sydney, a member of the board of trustees of the Technological Corporation of Andalusia (CTA), and a former Managing Director of the Andalusian Association for Research and Industrial Cooperation (AICIA), of which he remains a member. He also served as Deputy Director of the ETSI (School of Engineering). He is a member of the board of the European Union Control Association and a Fellow of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and the AAIA (Asia-Pacific Association of Artificial Intelligence). Stanford University included him in its prestigious ranking “World’s Top 2%” which brings together the world's most influential researchers.

His research focuses on advanced process control, especially predictive control and its application to energy systems, including microgrids and green hydrogen. He is co-author of several books on the subject, most notably "Model Predictive Control" (3 editions) and "Model Predictive Control of Microgrids," published by Springer.

The recognition of Carlos Bordons Alba also highlights the level of scientific and research excellence of the faculty at the Higher Technical School of Engineering of the University of Seville, the result of established and successful track records in research, teaching, and knowledge transfer. In this respect, the National Automation Award recognizes not only Bordons Alba's contributions in areas such as advanced control and energy systems, but also an academic and professional career linked to knowledge generation, the training of new generations of engineers and researchers, and the application of research results to significant technological challenges. His career also reflects the capacity of the Higher Technical School of Engineering, in particular, and the University of Seville, in general, to develop scientific activity of excellence closely linked to teaching and technology transfer.