SuperNode CEO John Fitzgerald, yesterday attended the Ostend North Seas Energy Summit along with the Heads of State & Government of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and the UK. The Ostend Summit also gathered European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the energy ministers of the 9 nations in the largest ever political Summit on energy in the North Seas. The leaders have committed to new offshore wind targets of at least 120 GW by 2030 and 300 GW in the North Seas by 2050.
The Prime Minister’s Declaration also acknowledges the need for infrastructure: “We will jointly develop The North Seas as a Green Power Plant of Europe, an offshore renewable energy system connecting our countries with a particular focus on joint hybrid/multi-purpose and cross-border offshore projects and hubs, offshore wind and renewable hydrogen production at massive scale as well as electricity and hydrogen interconnectors and national projects.”
In a significant step, The Energy Minister’s Declaration outlined plans to develop a “meshed offshore grid” to incorporate the newly increased offshore renewables targets. Traditional offshore wind farms have point-to-point connections to shore, delivering renewable electricity to a single landing point onshore. However, if we are going to incorporate all of the offshore renewables targeted by the Prime Ministers gathered in Ostend, we will need an interconnected and meshed grid connecting offshore wind farms to multiple markets. The declaration states:
“We fully support the on-going work to develop a high-level strategic integrated offshore network development plan for the North Seas, including by enhanced cross-border coordination of grid and maritime spatial planning. In that respect we also welcome the initiative that the Transmission System Operators (TSO’s) from Belgium, Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands have undertaken to develop a meshed offshore grid and to identify the next steps for its realisation. We invite them to continue the work and extend the process to the TSO’s of the five countries that have joined this declaration.”
In an Industry Declaration, over 100 companies representing the whole value chain of offshore wind in Europe, including SuperNode, have outlined what the nine Governments need to do now to deliver their offshore wind ambitions. The declaration called for investments in European value chains, as well as strengthening Europe’s wind and grid manufacturing capacities. The Industry Declaration states that ” Clear investment signals and plug-in ready grids are key to unlock the huge volume of investments needed.
SuperNode CEO John Fitzgerald commented on the summit: “The Ostend Summit is a significant step towards meeting Europe’s renewable energy goals. It’s encouraging to see so many stakeholders coming together to prioritise the development of offshore wind and the acknowledgement of a new approach to grid planning in the development of a meshed offshore grid. At SuperNode, we recognise the need for grid technology and meshed offshore grids, and we are committed to improving innovation in grid technology, through the use of our superconducting cable technology, to meet the expanding demand for renewable energy.”
Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar highlighted the need to develop wind energy to combat climate change. “We have no time to waste in acting, and we have to be the generation that turns the tide on climate change and biodiversity [loss],” he added. The declaration also looks beyond the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, Celtic Sea and Irish Sea, saying that the countries will “further endeavour to accelerate deployment of offshore renewables and connectivity” in these areas.
Ireland has vast potential for offshore wind, with sea space seven times greater than its land mass. Varadkar wants to work with regional partners to develop offshore grids and power connections to “benefit us all.”
SuperNode is committed to decarbonising Europe through the adoption of renewable electricity via interconnected, meshed continental scale grids. For these grids to operate efficiently and effectively, new grid technology is needed with a much higher capacity than conventional underground and subsea cables. SuperNode is developing innovative cable systems based on superconductivity that will be key to enabling the renewable energy transition.
