On 18 May 2022, the President of the EU Commission and the Prime Ministers of the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, and Germany met in Esbjerg, Denmark, for the North Sea Summit. In a joint declaration, the four EU North Sea littorals announced intentions to cooperate more closely on the development of offshore wind energy. Together, they want to quadruple the capacity of offshore wind energy in the North Sea to at least 65 gigawatts by 2030. By 2050, the capacity is planned to further increase to 150 gigawatts. Concrete infrastructural projects for increasing capacities are to be developed and implemented jointly by the four states. These include the development of offshore “energy islands” - are artificial and natural structures that combine wind farms, electricity grids and other units for the production and further processing of renewable energies that have featured prominently in offshore policy debates in recent years. The states also plan to produce of green hydrogen using offshore wind energy. Through these projects, the Esbjerg-Declaration announced, the North Sea region will become the “green power plant of Europe”.
The declaration and summit propose these measures as a response to climate change and energy insecurity. The project will contribute to the fulfilment of EU and international climate change mitigation agendas, and in particular to climate neutrality and net zero goals. At the same time, offshore renewable energy development represents a diversification of the energy mix for regional states and will consequently contribute to reducing dependence on Russian fossil fuel imports. In short, the proposed agenda will contribute to a more sustainable and resilient European energy system. That the meeting took place in Esbjerg is therefore particularly poignant: the town was formally a centre for oil and gas transport, but now serves as a global hub for offshore wind energy. It thus epitomises the narrative of transition, transformation, and independence promoted at the summit. While Denmark, as host of the meeting, explicitly claims a leading role in the development of offshore wind energy, the Esbjerg-Declaration makes clear that it is the whole of the North Sea that will adopt a leading role in European offshore wind energy: the planned increase in capacity represents almost half of the planned total European offshore wind capture.
What of the relevance of the Declaration to the Baltic Sea region? In Denmark and Germany, two countries bordering the Baltic Sea are significantly involved in the plans to expand offshore wind energy and energy islands in the North Sea. One of these states, Denmark, has claimed a leading role for itself in the project. It remains to be seen whether and to what extent the plans, and new infrastructures, and governance structures will have an impact on cooperation and the expansion of offshores renewable projects in the Baltic Sea. Cooperation and joint project realisations are also imminent among the Baltic littorals, particularly with regards to the development of offshore wind energy. Territorial cooperation, feasibility studies and other cooperation is ongoing in this area. This cooperation is imperative to building a common grid as the basis for the common energy market. The energy islands and cooperative models for the production of renewable energy and green hydrogen announced for the North Sea are also feasible in the Baltic Sea. The proposed Baltic meshed grid and plans for the Bornholm energy island exemplify regional offshore potential. The Esbjerg-Declaration can thus serve as an example of commitment to regional offshore cooperation for the Baltic Sea littorals. Given the urgency of energy system transformation in the face of the climate change emergency and Russian geopolitical instability, it is crucial for regions to share and adapt to potentially successful models developed in other regions.
- Mary Keogh, Michael Kalis, Judith Kärn