Uniper’s Digital Transformation: AI, Process Intelligence & Automation Revolutionizing European Energy

Uniper, one of Europe’s leading energy companies, is embarking on an ambitious digital transformation journey powered by a strategic collaboration with Celonis and Microsoft, aiming to redefine operational excellence in the energy sector through artificial intelligence, process intelligence, and end-to-end automation. This partnership is not only indicative of the mounting pressure energy firms face to modernize, but also serves as a bellwether for the broader industry’s shift towards data-driven, AI-powered business orchestration.

The Context: Why Digital Transformation is Critical in Energy​

The energy industry is grappling with seismic changes—volatile market dynamics, decarbonization pressures, evolving regulatory landscapes, and ever-increasing customer demands. Scaling renewables, managing complex grids, integrating distributed energy resources, and optimizing asset performance all demand agile, transparent, and intelligent business processes. Uniper’s recognition of this need is reflected in the words of Damian Bunyan, their Chief Information Officer: “The energy industry is facing major challenges, and we want to be a pioneer in digital transformation. The powerful combination of Microsoft’s AI technologies with Celonis’ process intelligence lets us identify value-driving AI use cases, intelligently automate workflows, and track performance gains.”
As sustainability targets tighten and competition intensifies, energy companies that fail to modernize risk obsolescence. Digital transformation, when executed successfully, does more than streamline costs: it fundamentally repositions organizations for data-led growth, regulatory compliance, and operational resilience.

Inside the Collaboration: Celonis, Microsoft, and Uniper​

At the heart of this transformation is the integration of Celonis Process Intelligence with Microsoft’s Copilot Studio and Power Automate, underpinned by a growing interoperability within Microsoft Fabric. This triad creates a system-agnostic process intelligence platform—one capable of ingesting real-time process data, dynamically automating workflows, and supporting the ideation and deployment of generative AI models across myriad business scenarios.

What Each Partner Brings​

• Celonis: Renowned for inventing process mining software, Celonis delivers its process intelligence platform, enabling real-time analysis of any business process regardless of its IT system origin. This allows for the identification of inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and opportunities for automation, grounded in a process-centric data foundation.
• Microsoft: Beyond its productivity suite—including Teams, Power BI, and Power Automate—Microsoft delivers rapid AI deployment via Copilot Studio, augmented by Microsoft Fabric’s unified data framework. This maximizes access and orchestration of process data, empowering both citizen developers and technical teams to build intelligent automation agents.
• Uniper: As an early adopter, Uniper acts both as beneficiary and pioneer, deploying these technologies across 27 critical business processes with eight source systems, and benefiting over 350 active users company-wide.

Integration at Scale​

Celonis’ platform now integrates directly with Microsoft Fabric, enhancing data availability and enabling seamless use across AI development and automation settings. Process data extracted via Celonis is rendered actionable within Microsoft Copilot, offering end-users AI-powered suggestions, automation triggers, and insights grounded in business context.
Charles Lamanna, Corporate Vice President for Business and Industry Copilot at Microsoft, commented: “The next generation of AI requires deep reasoning grounded in enterprise data and business processes. By combining Celonis Process Intelligence with Microsoft Copilot Studio and Microsoft AI, we are enabling companies to build intelligent solutions that deeply understand and optimise business operations. Uniper is a great example of how this powerful combination can accelerate transformation, unlock significant value, and help companies lead their industries forward.”

AI in Action: Practical Use Cases and Results at Uniper​

Uniper’s collaboration with Celonis dates back five years and highlights the evolution from process mining as a diagnostic tool to an engine for operational improvement and AI-driven automation. The reported operational gains are both broad and deep:

Core Operational Improvements​

• Plant Maintenance: Improved workplace safety and compliance by optimizing maintenance scheduling and execution; this not only reduces risk but also cuts supplier waiting times—critical in heavy-asset industries where downtime is expensive and dangerous.
• Human Resources: Automated notifications and streamlined data flows have shortened hiring cycles and improved the recruiter and candidate experience—a key differentiator amid ongoing talent shortages across the energy sector.
• Hydro Power Reporting: Enhanced timeliness in business reporting has reduced operational costs and enabled better supplier management—critical for balancing efficiency and sustainability imperatives.
• IT Service Management: Greater efficiency in supplier steering and incident response has decreased time-to-resolution for critical IT incidents.
• Energy Sales and Technology: Shortened proposal management cycles, accelerated deal closure, and automated routine reporting tasks improve both internal efficiency and customer satisfaction.
• Financial Services: Automation is used to optimize cash discounts, supporting stronger working capital and more resilient financial performance.
• Internal Audit: The “Trusted Advisor” model and data-driven eAudit framework, underpinned by Celonis and Microsoft technology, enhance risk management and drive continuous improvement.

These real-world results corroborate the collaboration’s claims, with Uniper increasingly acting as an industry exemplar for digital transformation with AI.

The Role of AI and Process Intelligence: More Than Buzzwords​

Several factors distinguish this initiative from typical “digital transformation” projects:

• AI Contextualization: Bastian Nominacher, co-founder and co-CEO of Celonis, observes that “AI is only as effective as the data and context it feeds on.” Process intelligence ensures AI models are not “black boxes,” but instead have access to the data lineage and business context needed for rational and explainable decision-making. By building a process-centric data foundation, Celonis enables AI models deployed within Microsoft Copilot to reason deeply, recommend optimizations, and automate actions grounded in business reality.
• System-Agnostic Approach: Uniper’s varied IT landscape benefits from Celonis’ capability to connect across legacy and modern source systems—enhancing visibility from plant operations through to finance and auditing.
• Scalable Automation: Leveraging Power Automate and Copilot Studio, Uniper can scale automation initiatives company-wide. This enables both top-down strategic process overhauls and bottom-up employee-driven innovation.

Critical Analysis: Strengths and Risks​

Notable Strengths​

• Holistic Digital Strategy: The partnership leverages best-of-breed platforms while retaining the flexibility to connect across systems—a crucial requirement given the diversity and legacy challenges typical in energy companies.
• Demonstrable ROI: The reported operational improvements are concrete, spanning safety, cost, speed, compliance, and talent development. Tangible outcomes are essential to sustaining momentum and executive backing for transformation programs.
• Focus on Transparency and Governance: By centering on process intelligence, Uniper safeguards against “runaway automation” and ensures transparency—vital from an ESG and regulatory standpoint.
• Pioneering Role: Uniper’s position as an early adopter in the global energy sector provides a compelling case study for others. Its scale, operational complexity, and results mean that lessons learned will likely inform industry standards and best practices.

Potential Risks and Challenges​

• Scalability and Sustainability: While results are promising, scaling pilots to seamless company-wide adoption can unearth unforeseen technical, cultural, and change management hurdles. Ensuring continued user engagement after novelty fades, and upskilling the workforce to harness new tools, can be significant undertakings and must remain a focus for sustained impact.
• Data Quality and Integration: Process intelligence and AI are only as good as the data available. Integrating disparate IT systems—especially older, bespoke platforms—remains a technical challenge. Inaccurate or incomplete data can lead to misguided automation, compliance failures, or biased AI recommendations.
• Cybersecurity and Privacy Risks: As process data is centralized and leveraged by AI agents, the attack surface grows. AI-powered automation can inadvertently propagate vulnerabilities if not governed tightly. Given the critical importance of energy infrastructure to national security, Uniper and partners will need to maintain rigorous controls, continuous monitoring, and zero-trust principles across the data and automation stack.
• Vendor Dependency: Integrating deeply with platforms such as Microsoft and Celonis can yield enormous short-term gains but also increases dependency on third parties for innovation, support, and regulatory compliance. As the regulatory environment tightens around data sovereignty and AI, careful governance is essential.
• Regulatory and Ethical Considerations: As AI agents increasingly take on sensitive tasks (e.g., HR, financial management, plant operations), maintaining human oversight, ensuring explainability, and complying with shifting regulations such as the EU AI Act will be essential to avoid reputational and compliance risks.

Verifying the Claims​

Several claims made by the partnership are verifiable through press releases, case studies, and third-party reports. For instance, Uniper’s use of Celonis across 27 processes and eight source systems, along with operational improvements in HR, plant maintenance, and reporting, are documented both in company statements and supported by coverage from leading industry publications such as IT Brief Australia and Microsoft’s own enterprise customer stories.
Independent analysis of process mining and automation trends corroborates the value of such initiatives for operational excellence. Gartner has frequently cited process intelligence as a top enabler of business transformation, and industry benchmarks from other energy leaders echo the ROI reported by Uniper.
However, direct, quantified bottom-line impact (such as exact cost savings, productivity uplift, or accident reduction) is not disclosed publicly, likely due to competitive and regulatory reasons. As always, claims of AI-driven transformation should be viewed with a degree of healthy skepticism and require longitudinal tracking of performance metrics over multi-year periods for validation.

Industry Implications: A Blueprint for AI-Driven Energy Transformation​

Uniper’s journey with Celonis and Microsoft is uniquely instructive for other players in the energy, utilities, and process industries. The key takeaways:

• Digital transformation is not optional—modern energy companies must invest in data-driven and AI-augmented processes to survive and lead.
• Successful transformation demands integration across people, processes, and platforms—not just technology upgrades.
• AI’s business value is unlocked through process intelligence, scalable automation, and relentless focus on data quality and governance.
• Partnerships with proven technology leaders, and active participation in the evolving AI and process intelligence ecosystem, are essential to accelerate value realization and manage emerging risks.

Looking Ahead: Opportunities and Cautions​

As AI platforms mature, process intelligence will become a cornerstone of continuous improvement. With Microsoft Fabric lowering barriers to data interoperability and Copilot Studio democratizing AI agent creation, organizations will be able to automate more, faster, and with greater business context than ever before.
Yet, this also means a greater responsibility to manage risk—to ensure AI and automation do not propagate biases, missteps, or security vulnerabilities at scale. The human factor—ongoing upskilling and cultural change—remains paramount.
For Uniper, continued investment in transparency, sustainability, and resilience will be key to securing its position as a digital transformation leader. For the global energy industry, Uniper’s collaborative approach with Celonis and Microsoft offers a compelling model—one that balances ambition with pragmatism, innovation with governance, and technology with a focus on tangible business outcomes.
The energy transition will be shaped not just by new fuels and assets, but by the intelligence woven through everyday business processes. As Uniper’s experience demonstrates, when data meets context, and intelligence meets orchestration, the potential for industry renewal is vast. Those who embrace this future—armed with robust process intelligence, scalable AI, and an appetite for continuous reinvention—will help define the next era of sustainable, resilient energy leadership.

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Source: IT Brief Australia Celonis, Uniper & Microsoft drive AI-powered energy overhaul

 

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Uniper, a major force in the global energy landscape, has taken a decisive step forward in the digital transformation of its business. By forging a cutting-edge partnership with both Microsoft and Celonis, the company aims to harness artificial intelligence to automate workflows, sharpen operational visibility, and ultimately redefine how energy is managed and delivered across Europe and beyond.

Navigating the Complexities of the Modern Energy Sector​

The energy sector stands at a crossroads. Pressured by the rapid pace of decarbonization, increasing regulatory demands, unpredictability in global markets, and the surge in data-heavy operations, companies face unprecedented challenges. In this landscape, digital transformation isn’t simply an option—it’s a survival imperative.
Uniper, headquartered in Germany and active in over 40 countries, currently operates approximately 19.5GW of generation capacity in Europe. This scale places Uniper among the world’s top power producers, making its modernization strategies particularly influential to the sector at large.
Damian Bunyan, Uniper’s Chief Information Officer, encapsulates this strategic shift succinctly: “We want to be a pioneer in digital transformation. The energy industry is facing major challenges.” It’s a sentiment echoed across the sector, but Uniper’s latest pact with two technology giants signals they intend to lead—and set benchmarks that others may follow.

The Building Blocks: Microsoft, Celonis, and Process Intelligence​

At the heart of Uniper’s digital ambitions is a tripartite combination:

• Celonis’ Process Intelligence Platform: Renowned for its deep process mining and analytics capabilities, Celonis enables companies to visualize, analyze, and optimize complex business processes in real time.
• Microsoft Copilot Studio: Built on generative AI, Copilot Studio delivers intelligent assistance and automation within Microsoft’s vast productivity ecosystem, including Power Platform, Microsoft 365, and Azure.
• Microsoft Power Automate: This platform allows users to create automated workflows between various apps and services, increasing efficiency and reducing human error.

By weaving together these technologies, Uniper aims to unlock value at multiple layers of its operations—from plant maintenance to human resources and business reporting.

Five Years in the Making: Laying the Groundwork​

This initiative is not Uniper’s first digital foray with Celonis. Over the past five years, the companies have collaborated on several projects targeting operational improvements within the organization. For instance, Uniper used Celonis tools to streamline plant maintenance, overhaul HR systems, and enhance business reporting. Each of these projects delivered measurable boosts in efficiency, laying a robust groundwork for more ambitious, AI-driven transformations.
In the energy sector, legacy IT and operational technology (OT) systems prevail. Uniper’s earlier use of process mining unearthed several actionable insights, including redundant manual steps, bottlenecks, and poor data synchronizations that quietly erode productivity. By addressing these pain points, Uniper realized direct cost savings and indirect improvements in speed and reliability.
With the addition of Microsoft’s cloud-based AI and automation suite, Uniper now stands poised to scale these improvements across the enterprise.

How AI Will Drive Change at Uniper​

Intelligent Automation: From Routine Tasks to Mission-Critical Processes​

The most immediate expectation from this partnership is the rapid acceleration of intelligent automation. By leveraging Celonis’ process mining engine, Uniper can identify both straightforward and complex workflows ripe for automation. Microsoft tools enhance this further by enabling smart, context-aware bots to handle routine and even semi-structured tasks.
For example, consider the typical workflow for plant maintenance:

1. Incident Reporting: Historically manual, now automatable via AI-driven chatbots integrated with Microsoft 365.
2. Task Assignment: Automated decisions can dynamically allocate jobs to technicians based on skillset, location, and current workload.
3. Resource Procurement: Inventory checks and purchase orders can be streamlined via auto-triggered flows, only flagging exceptions for human intervention.
4. Performance Reporting: Data from maintenance tasks automatically aggregates into real-time dashboards, improving managerial oversight.

This “process intelligence”—moving beyond simple workflow automation to intelligent, self-improving operations—marks a significant leap.

Enhanced Operational Visibility​

Data silos remain a persistent issue in the utility sector. By integrating Celonis’ process intelligence with Microsoft’s unified cloud ecosystem, Uniper expects to achieve end-to-end transparency across its value chain. This means:

• Holistic, real-time views of key operational processes
• The ability to spot performance anomalies instantly
• Proactive identification of inefficiencies before they escalate into critical issues

Such visibility not only accelerates response times but supports a culture of continuous improvement, as employees can more effectively track, measure, and act upon process gaps.

Empowering Employees through AI​

Uniper’s leadership has made clear that, while automation is a goal, human expertise remains fundamental. By carefully integrating Copilot Studio into everyday workflows, Uniper aims to empower rather than displace staff.
AI-driven assistants can take over repetitive and low-value tasks, freeing up employees for higher-order problem-solving, strategic planning, and customer-centric activities. Furthermore, the system’s insights can help upskill staff, allowing them to focus on learning, innovation, and strategic development—crucial in an industry evolving as quickly as energy.

Risk Considerations: AI’s Double-Edged Sword​

While the promise of AI-driven automation is enticing, the road ahead is not without risks.

Data Security and Compliance​

The use of cloud-based automation and AI tools increases the enterprise attack surface, exposing operational and customer data to new threats. Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the energy sector’s strict regulatory codes demand robust data governance and cybersecurity postures. Both Celonis and Microsoft have invested heavily in compliance and security certifications, with Microsoft Azure and Power Platform supporting a range of enterprise-grade protections and audit capabilities. Nevertheless, the onus remains on Uniper to maintain rigorous controls and oversight.

Algorithmic Bias and Transparency​

AI-driven decisions, especially those affecting hiring, procurement, and customer interactions, can unwittingly embed biases or produce outcomes that aren’t easily explainable. Uniper must therefore invest in transparent, auditable AI pipelines—something both Microsoft and Celonis claim to support. Independent reviews and ongoing human oversight will be critical to keeping automation “on track” and aligned with organizational values.

Change Management: Culture and Adoption​

Technology alone does not guarantee transformation. Success rests on organization-wide buy-in, staff training, and the ability to adapt processes without introducing friction or morale issues. Even the most powerful AI tools can falter if staff resist integration efforts or if workflows are inadequately designed. Here, Uniper’s emphasis on empowerment is notable, but ongoing communication and support are essential to avoid digital fatigue.

The Strategic Importance of Process Intelligence in Energy​

The European energy market is undergoing profound change, with decarbonization, decentralization, and digitalization accelerating at pace. Companies like Uniper, faced with aging infrastructure and shifting market mechanisms, need to extract every ounce of value from their processes to remain competitive.
Process intelligence platforms deliver more than reporting—they’re active engines for optimization. By dynamically mapping how work actually gets done (as opposed to how managers believe it is done), these platforms expose inefficiencies and opportunities invisible to traditional enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. When combined with AI and robotic process automation (RPA), this intelligence translates into tangible gains: faster cycle times, reduced costs, and enhanced customer outcomes.

What Sets Uniper’s Approach Apart?​

Holistic, Partner-Driven Digitalization​

Rather than building proprietary AI and automation solutions in isolation, Uniper is tapping into best-of-breed platforms. Microsoft’s cloud, AI, and business apps ecosystem, coupled with Celonis’ proven process mining technology, create a stack that’s both scalable and widely supported.
Such partnerships have proven successful in other sectors—financial services, manufacturing, and healthcare, to name a few. But energy, with its unique regulatory and technical constraints, presents a greater challenge. Uniper’s prior five-year engagement with Celonis boosts the credibility of these efforts; the company isn’t starting from zero but advancing on proven operational successes.

A Focus on Continuous Innovation​

Uniper’s strategy emphasizes ongoing optimization rather than one-off transformation projects. By building in feedback loops through real-time process monitoring, the company creates a culture—and capability—of constant improvement. With every automated workflow or AI-optimized process, new data is collected and new insights emerge, feeding further rounds of innovation.

Employee Empowerment, Not Just Replacement​

Where many digital transformations stumble—especially in industries with large, established workforces—is in sidelining or displacing employees. Uniper’s approach, as articulated by Damian Bunyan, stresses employee empowerment and training. When AI is positioned as an “enabler” rather than a “replacement,” adoption rates rise and benefits multiply.

The Role of Microsoft Copilot Studio and Power Automate​

Microsoft’s rapidly evolving suite of generative AI tools extends even the most advanced process mining and automation strategies. Copilot Studio, leveraging advanced large language models (LLMs) tuned for enterprise use, can generate, explain, and optimize automation scripts with simple natural language prompts. For instance, a business analyst at Uniper could describe a repetitive task (“compile daily outage reports and email them to the engineering team”), and Copilot Studio would create a Power Automate workflow in minutes.
This democratization of automation—enabling non-technical staff to build, deploy, and refine bots—addresses both speed and agility. Combined with enterprise controls and auditing features, it reduces IT bottlenecks while protecting against shadow IT risks.

Case Study: Plant Maintenance Redefined​

Although specifics of Uniper’s new AI-driven workflows aren’t yet public, their earlier process improvement efforts offer a glimpse into what’s possible.
In traditional power plant maintenance, manual incident reporting, ticket assignment, and inventory checks could create hours of lag—leading to downtime and sometimes increased costs. By introducing process mining, Uniper identified these bottlenecks and optimized hand-offs to reduce response times.
The integration with Microsoft’s automation and AI suite could take this further, from predictive incident detection—where AI spots anomalies in equipment telemetry—to automated scheduling and parts procurement, cutting downtime and costs dramatically.

Impact on Customer Value and Market Position​

Greater efficiency internally translates quickly into market advantages. Faster maintenance and improved HR functions mean higher uptime, fewer outages, and better employee morale—each of which can significantly impact both cost management and customer satisfaction. In competitive and regulated energy markets, these gains can mean the difference between compliance and penalty, or profitability and loss.
Moreover, by publicly positioning itself as an AI pioneer, Uniper strengthens its brand for both customers and potential investors. This is increasingly relevant as energy buyers and regulators evaluate companies on both innovation and sustainability credentials.

Broader Implications for the Energy Industry​

Uniper’s partnership with Microsoft and Celonis is likely to spark interest—and possibly emulation—across Europe’s energy sector. Other major utilities, many still grappling with fragmented IT, outdated ERP, and manual workflows, will watch closely. The measurable success of this strategy could shift industry standards toward AI- and automation-driven operations.
However, companies rushing to adopt similar technologies must recognize that digital transformation is not simply about software licensing; it’s about a methodical reinvention of processes, skills, and culture. Cloud and AI adoption requires careful regulatory navigation, commitment to security, and substantial training investment.

Uniper’s Roadmap: What’s Next?​

While the details of Uniper’s future projects remain under wraps, the foundations are clear: ongoing expansion of AI-powered process intelligence, deeper integration with Microsoft’s cloud and analytics ecosystem, and a steady focus on continuous improvement.
Areas ripe for next-phase optimization might include:

• Grid operations and trading—where real-time data analysis is crucial for profit and compliance
• Supply chain optimization—integrating outside vendors and logistics partners into unified, AI-enhanced workflows
• Customer engagement and support—using intelligent bots to handle queries, predict outages, and provide proactive updates

Uniper will also need to remain vigilant regarding regulatory shifts, cybersecurity threats, and the evolving expectations of its workforce and customers.

Critical Analysis: Weighing Strengths and Potential Pitfalls​

Notable Strengths​

• Partnering with Industry Leaders: The Microsoft-Celonis-Uniper triangle brings both technological scale and proven deployment experience, reducing risks associated with untested platforms.
• Emphasis on Process Intelligence: By focusing on data-driven process optimization, Uniper directly targets operational inefficiency—a key pain point in energy utilities.
• Long-term Vision: Uniper’s emphasis on continuous, employee-empowering innovation sets it apart from numerous hasty or top-down transformation attempts.
• Regulatory Alignment: By working with partners well-versed in GDPR and critical infrastructure requirements, Uniper reduces the risk of compliance missteps.

Potential Risks​

• Overreliance on External Platforms: Heavy use of third-party platforms can create strategic dependencies and limit future flexibility if priorities shift or partnerships falter.
• Data Privacy and Security: No system is immune to breach, and the interconnection of sensitive operational data with cloud-based AI increases exposure, however robust the controls may be.
• Complexity Management: Integrating new tools into legacy environments carries risks of system incompatibility, migration errors, or unanticipated performance bottlenecks.
• Employee Adaptation: While the intent to empower is clear, successful change management is not guaranteed. Continuous communication, upskilling, and careful management are critical.
• AI Regulation: The regulatory landscape for AI use, especially in critical sectors, is rapidly evolving. Uniper will need agile compliance strategies to stay ahead of both European and country-specific legal requirements.

Conclusion: A Blueprint for the Future—or a Cautionary Tale in Waiting?​

Uniper’s bold move to scale the use of AI across its workflows with Microsoft and Celonis marks a watershed moment for the European energy sector. The partnership’s focus on process intelligence, automation, and employee empowerment offers a compelling model for how utilities can reimagine their operations in a rapidly changing world.
Yet, success will depend on the company’s ability to balance technological innovation with robust risk management, regulatory compliance, and a culture of continuous learning and adaptation. As competitors observe and policymakers weigh the social and technical implications, Uniper’s experience will serve as both blueprint and bellwether: a test case for digital transformation at scale in one of the world’s most critical and complex industries.
For now, all eyes are on Uniper as it takes the next steps into an automated future—one that is not just about technology, but about people, purpose, and sustainable energy for tomorrow.

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Source: Mobile World Live Energy player Uniper eyes process gains from AI pact