Until the end of 2004, IZES was supported by the Center for Future Energy Systems (ZES e.V.). After extensive preparations and years of close cooperation, the sponsoring association ZES e.V. was merged into AZES GmbH, the Energy Agency of Saarland.

The company was officially registered in the commercial register under B 8499 on October 12, 2005. Following a subsequent name change, the merged organization is now called IZES gGmbH. The company operates exclusively and directly for non-profit purposes. The merger of both institutions was retroactively effective as of January 1, 2005.

Apart from the state of Saarland—which holds around 70% of the main shareholder stake—the remaining shares of the total €820,000 in share capital are held by Stadtwerke Saarbrücken Netz AG, VSE AG, STEAG New Energies GmbH, Pfalzwerke AG, Enovos Deutschland SE, the University of Applied Sciences of Saarland (htw saar), and Saarland University.

IZES gGmbH promotes environmental and climate protection, particularly through applied research and development in the field of future technologies and markets for energy and material flow systems. Additionally, it engages in consulting, supporting, and implementing innovative measures for efficient energy use, renewable energy utilization, and resource conservation. The interplay of various work areas enables the analysis and resolution of questions from economic, material flow, spatial, energy technology, and environmental psychology perspectives.

IZES gGmbH manages regional, national, and international projects on behalf of and in collaboration with municipalities, authorities, ministries, institutions, national and European funding organizations, private companies, and other scientific institutions. In addition to initiating and scientifically supporting cooperative projects in Germany and neighboring European countries, IZES gGmbH is also involved in large-scale scientific projects with an international focus.