The Paris Agreement and other national climate agreements require quick actions and open opportunities for the search of smart synergies between existing and new energy systems. Having a strong offshore oil and gas sector and large ambitions in offshore renewables in several North Sea countries, there is a huge potential for creating value from these synergies. This is a relatively new field, that requires strong leadership in research and industry to be able to use the existing window of opportunity. The North Sea energy system does not stop at borders. International collaboration on the Nexus of oil & gas and renewables may offer more optimal synergies, as well as opportunities to share experiences and knowledge that can accelerate the energy transition. Cross-border collaboration, alignment and joint planning in the North Sea region is key to make the energy transition into a success.
With this in mind, TNO and the Net Zero Technology Centre established One North Sea – a platform that focusses on stimulating this international collaboration on the Nexus by bringing together the ideas and initiatives of research organizations, industry and governments.
As the energy transition develops in the North Sea, the scope of activities at sea is changing significantly. Oil and gas production is in decline and renewable energy production increasing steadily, changing the energy landscape, enabling synergies between the different forms of energy production, and creating potential to leverage legacy infrastructure in new ways.
To create a catalogue of integration projects already underway in the North Sea, a database has been developed where ongoing energy projects with a component of re-use of existing infrastructure are mapped out.
The following themes were included in the One North Sea database:
- CO2 Transport & Storage
- Electrification
- Hydrogen Transport
- Hydrogen Production Offshore
- Hydrogen Storage Offshore
- Geothermal Energy Production
Close to 90 projects were identified, most of them taking place in the Netherland, followed by UK and Norway. Most common themes: CO2 transportation and storage, Electrification, Hydrogen transport and Hydrogen production offshore. These can be found under the Projects tab on this website.
One north Sea has developed this website to provide a place where people can contribute to the One North Sea platform and where we can disseminate the outcomes of this initiative. The database is available for download and any further contributions for relevant projects that should be added are welcomed through the 'Talk Zone'.