Power engineering covers all the processes and devices needed to generate primary energy and convert it into a utilisable form of secondary energy. Power engineering is a multi-disciplinary science which deals with engines, turbines, boilers, reactors, generators, transformers and their automation. Research in this field focuses on the efficiency of energy transformation, transport and usage in the processes for which these machines are needed.

Research and development in power engineering concentrates on the generation, transformation and distribution of energy, as well as on energy efficiency and heating and refrigeration technology. Power plant engineering is one of the branches of power engineering. Depending on the energy source, a distinction is made between processes and devices for conventional energy generation (gas plants, oil plants, coal and nuclear power plants), on the one hand, and, on the other, processes and devices for regenerative energy generation (biomass power plants, fuel cell technology, solar technology, wind turbines, water power, tidal power plants and wave power stations).