17:05 Wrap Up Day 1
The first day of the Offshore Energy 2020 and Navingo Career 2020 is a wrap! After a plethora of important and interesting topics and many expert speakers, we continue tomorrow, 28 October, at the same place. Stay tuned!
16.30 …. and the award for best innovation goes to … FLASC B.V.
The first day of the
virtual edition of Offshore Energy 2020 is coming to a close with the award
ceremony. The Best Innovation Award highlights the best innovation in the
entire offshore energy market in the last two years (2019 and 2020).
Our jury of industry experts, business executives and academics, as well as the votes cast by the general public, selected the Dutch start-up FLASC as the overall winner for its hydro-pneumatic energy storage system.
FLASC’s energy storage
technology, tailored for offshore applications, is primarily intended for
short- to medium-term energy storage in order to convert an intermittent source
of renewable power into a smooth and predictable supply.
The solution addresses
a fundamental problem related to the integration of large-scale renewable
energy production into conventional energy systems: the mismatch between energy
supply and demand.
The award was accepted by FLASC Founder and CEO Daniel Buhagiar.
Other nominees for the Best Innovation Award were Siemens Gamesa for Active Filtering, and Van Oord for Slip Joint Connection which both presented their innovations before the winner was unveiled.
16:00 Infrastructure might be ‘the new gold’, but mind the gap
The final Energy talk for the first day of the Offshore Energy 2020 virtual event encompassed more than one industry and more than one aspect.
Lex de Groot, Managing Director at Neptune Energy, pointed out that offshore will be the place to reach the goal of no-emissions, green energy world such as harnessing offshore renewable energy and using it to power the production of green hydrogen.
To be able to utilise the infrastructure as best as possible, wind farms should be built close to the hydrogen production infrastructure, and existing infrastructure that sits on depleting resources makes for a good location to facilitate carbon capture and storage (CCS) offshore.
CCS, hydrogen and system integration are essential parts of energy transition, according to Lex de Groot.
15:15 Search & Change
Geert-Jan Joosten, Partner at Search & Change, joined us today to talk about the impact of COVID-19 on the labor market and the changes in job perspectives as well as his career path.
As a headhunter with a track record in mediating people with a technical background in senior management positions, Joosten shared his vision on the social importance of deploying people with a technical background in sectors other than those initially trained.
He also discussed the extent to which people are receptive to new technology and are able to continue to communicate with new generations.
Joosten offered pointers on how to further develop leadership skills, focussing on possitive attitude, listening skills, solututions and being present and also where to learn those skills faster.
We also saw him talk about where to start when you get yourself out there on the job market and what to look for.
Joosten wrapped up with a message that people should choose organisations that fit their personality, being that a start-up, scale-up or mature company and when making a career change to stay in touch with younger generations.
15:15 UK and the Offshore Energy in the North Sea
Chris Fox, Head of Europe and Offshore at the UK Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy, was the speaker at this Energy Talk session.
According to him, offshore wind is set to continue to play a
large role in UK’s net-zero ambitions and the country has previously announced
that it would be increasing its offshore wind capacity to 40 GW by 2030.
Fox stated that 48 billion pounds of capital investment
would be required to achieve this feat and one turbine to be installed per
weekday throughout the 2020s.
As a major challenge Fox pointed towards onshore connections
of wind farms which, at the moment, each have their own and, in turn, offshore transmission
and coordination between wind farm operators presents a major challenge for the
UK.
In an attempt to tackle that issue, the UK published its Offshore
Transmission Network Review in the summer. A review looked at how the offshore
transmission network is designed and delivered, consistent with the ambition to
deliver net-zero emissions by 2050.
To improve, the current point-to-point transmission approach
must change through coordination between wind farm operators or other elements
like offshore cables, oil and gas operators, etc.
If the connection of wind farms to the offshore is done by way of coordination, infrastructure savings can rise as high as 6 billion pounds. Another aspect of coordination and cooperation is on an international level and Fox gave an example of Denmark and Germany already working this way. The final coordination component for reaching net-zero in the UK is cross-sector coordination which includes the production of green hydrogen, decreasing oil and gas, increasing the number of carbon capture and storage projects as well as sharing expertise.
On the topic of the EU exit, Fox stated that Great Britain
cannot reach its goals without the EU and that the EU cannot reach its goals
without Great Britain. In
order to increase international cooperation and coordination, Fox said that the
UK would be starting a programme of engagement with North Sea neighbours –
starting with the Netherlands on 29 October. The UK will be continuing with
talks with other North Sea neighbours and it would all culminate in an event which
will be held in March 2021 to share knowledge, output, and learnings.
13:45 Unlocking the full potential of the North Sea
Dr. Joris Koornneef was the speaker for the next Energy Talk. He discussed how to create an inclusive portfolio of different eco-friendly technologies to reach both the carbon emission reduction targets set by the Paris Agreement and by the Government of the Netherlands.
Koornneef reminded that the North Sea was already a very
important energy region, especially in the oil and gas industry and the
offshore wind industry which is slowly catching up. He noted that hydrogen,
along with carbon capture and storage initiatives are now also being developed
in the region.
He also spoke of the North Sea Energy Programme – with 30 partners
involved in the programme – which is exploring innovations of the future.
The key element of the programme, according to Koornneef, is
an integrated approach to the offshore energy portfolio. Studies have shown
that benefits can be achieved if various energy functions, such as wind,
hydrogen, and natural gas are linked.
Such smart connections reduce carbon emissions, reduce
costs, as well as makes effective use of offshore space and accelerate the
energy transition. He believes that such an approach will put the North Sea on
the map as a pioneering region for the European energy transition.
Some of the ways, Koornneef said, that would accelerate this would be the creation of offshore hubs and spinoffs from other energy projects like production of hydrogen from the PosHYdon project using the existing offshore infrastructure.
The PosHYdon project aims to integrate three energy systems
in the North Sea: offshore wind, offshore gas, and offshore hydrogen by
producing hydrogen from seawater on Neptune Energy’s Q13-a platform in the
Dutch North Sea.
12:45 Future of Energy Transition
Peter Scheijgrond from MET-support led a very interesting talk show at our event today, hosting Sicco Kamminga, Director at Nortek BV, Daniel Buhagiar, CEO FLASC B.V., and Willem van Leeuwen, Project Manager Services Damen.
Next-generation
solutions in the offshore energy sector, along with the energy production
infrastructure itself, include Damen’s new virtual platform, Nortek’s acoustic
doppler, and FLASC’s storage device.
The solutions are aimed to bring advantage and help with existing obstacles, especially in the offshore renewables industries, as the energy transition moves forward.
From Nortek’s technology, tidal energy is one of the areas that can benefit and already have as the company has cooperated with tidal turbine developers. FLASC sees a wide-spanning market for the use of its storage solutions, mainly in offshore wind as one of the biggest offshore renewable energy industries.
In terms of installation and other vessels that support the offshore energy sector, Damen’s virtual solution brings benefits to vessel operators and, among other things in the closer future, the company sees artificial intelligence and machine learning as something that will be part of the business as usual.
12:00 The Promise of Offshore Floating Solar
Content-packed virtual Offshore Energy 2020 event is progressing with talks on offshore floating solar technologies.
Brigitte Vlaswinkel, research and offshore operations director at Dutch-based Oceans of Energy, shared her vision on the promise of offshore floating solar systems based on the results from their successful North Sea trials.
Vlaswinkel also showcased how their systems can be integrated with offshore wind and what potential it brings as well as environmental benefits.
Professor Wilfried van Sark from the University of Utrecht discussed the potential applications of solar energy technologies and performance differences between offshore and land-based photovoltaic (PV) systems.
He also detailed the challenges and advantages of offshore floating solar in real-life conditions and what kind of technologies could be used in future installations.
11:50 – Harness the power of water to solve our energy problems
More talks at the Energy Plaza. Our host talked with Peter Scheijgrond, Director of MET-support, which Eva Brouwer described as the “main marine energy man”.
During the short sit-down, Scheijgrond stated that power created by offshore wind and the sun must be used in order to reach environmental goals but added that harnessing the power of water would solve all our energy problems.
He further said that marine energy, as well as offshore wind, have to cooperate with oil and gas since most of the expertise still lies there and since many oil and gas operators are turning towards renewable sources.
When asked about which projects he was most excited about,
he pointed out core power which has the potential to make marine energy more
affordable.
“Best energy storage is the energy that does not need storage”, Scheijgrond said, referring to tidal energy which is independent of weather, unlike wind. He also said that at the moment the Netherlands has five tidal turbines in operating which are powering a 1,000 households.
11:15 – Marine Energy: The Next Big Thing in Energy
The moderator Peter Scheijgrond, Director at MET-Support, kicked off a talk show on marine energy as the next big thing in energy, with guest speakers Andries van Unen, CEO of Tocardo; Richard Parkinson, CEO of Inyanga-Tech; Patrik Möller, CEO of CorPower Ocean; and Kim Nielsen, Wave Energy Consultant at Ramboll.
The speakers discussed how marine energy fits
in the future energy mix and the various possibilities available for the sector
to complement other energy-generating technologies.
The focus was on the predictability of
tidal and wave energy – and how that quality can balance other intermittent
renewable energy resources such as offshore wind.
Andries van Unen spoke about small-scale tidal energy projects, and the possibility of integrating tidal energy plants into coastal and flood-defence barriers. Kim Nielsen also suggested the integration of wave energy into floating flood barriers, while Richard Parkinson spoke about floating tidal energy solutions and the production of hydrogen whereby ‘90% of risks and 50% of costs associated with subsea and dynamic cabling necessary for grid connection could be avoided if they were rerouted directly to establishing green hydrogen plants backed by tidal energy generation’.
11:00 Preparations for world champion solar boat team – A chat at the Energy Plaza
In a live interview via Zoom, a member of the 2019 World Championship winning TU Delft Solar Boat Team announced their plans for the upcoming race in Monaco in 2021 and the development of new technologies for the competitive solar racing boats as well as hydrogen-powered boats.
10:50 Taiwan the place to be – A chat at the Energy Plaza
At the Energy Plaza, host Eva Brouwer discussed safe rope access and gangway systems with Wijnand van Aalst, the CEO of Safeway. Mr. van Aalst talked about his company’s turn towards offshore wind using the example of DONG Energy – now Orsted.
He also talked about Taiwan being the place to be as companies and the government are investing in offshore wind and that Safeway can apply their experience from the North Sea to the Taiwanese offshore wind market.
9:45 The future of fair and bias-free recruitment
At a Navingo Career skills session at our first virtual event, hosted by Ivo Winkes, Partner LTP Online, and our Coco Kossmann, once again offshore wind – and especially the growing industry in the North Sea countries – got most of the attention, with recruitment drive rapidly increasing in this sector.
We saw a few presentations, such as from a Superintendant at Boskalis, and lots of success stories from the energy world. Videos showing the complexity of tasks and jobs offshore energy employees are skilled to take on paint quite a picture of what skills and expertise are needed.
9:45 Focus on Offshore Wind
The first live talk at the virtual Offshore Energy 2020 event talked about offshore wind, but not only that. As we move to a more clean-energy-oriented world, cross-market collaboration and system integration get more attention.
Moderated by Erwin Cooler, Owner at ECHT, the session hosted expert speakers Marcel van Bergen, Director Offshore Heavy Lifting at Boskalis, Wijnand van Aalst, CEO at Van Aalst, Benjamin Lehner, Business & Innovation Advisor at DMEC, Diederick Nierstrasz, Business Development Manager Wind at Ampelmann.
Our speakers gave an insight in the burning topics and issues of the offshore wind industry and the closely connected energy transition, with marine spatial planning and support from other offshore renewables as one of the main points in the way to move forward.
9:30 – Welcome to Offshore Energy 2020, Home of Energy Transition.
Our virtual exhibition and conference floor has just opened, with live conference sessions, showcase videos from our exhibitors, matchmaking programme – which seems to be attracting more people than expected – and many, many other features which you can access from the convenience of your home.
Bookmark this Live Blog page to stay tuned and follow the updates from conference sessions taking place throughout these two days!
Coert van Zijll Langhout, Managing Director of Navingo BV, and Anne Visser, Director of Operations at Navingo BV, just opened the event. Looking forward to seeing you all virtually!
With numerous Live Talk Shows, Show Cases, Energy Talks by experts, Live Interviews, Matchmaking, a digital Pub Quiz and lot more, this year’s edition promises to be an energetic, fruitful, and inspiring event, again.
Do you also want to be a part of this leading event? Register today!
Find your personal link to enter the event in your email.
Enough said about the challenges and limitations that covid poses to all of us and our industry. Much can be done – especially online – to connect with your peers and have experts inform you about the latest ideas and technologies. At OEEC’s first virtual edition, all this and more is possible.
What to expect
OEEC creates the perfect opportunity for people working in the offshore energy industry to establish new business relationships and maintain existing ones.
You can expect plenty of interaction, information, presentations and innovations, lots of which will be live-streamed. Offshore Energy built a studio in RAI Amsterdam from which talk shows and discussions will be recorded and broadcasted.
Simultaneously, the Navingo Career Event also takes place online, presenting career opportunities in the maritime, offshore and energy sector. Participants can attend both virtual events.
Matchmaking
Meet, share knowledge and get to know each other with the Navingo Matchmaking programme. Every participant has free access to the basic features of this proven network tool. If you like it, you can upgrade to Full Event Access or even to Year-Round Access, so you can keep networking long after the event.
Award ceremony
On the 27th of October, 16.30 the winner of the Best Innovation Award will be announced. There will also be a short Q&A session with the winner.
Registration
You can register for free at registration.offshore-energy.biz
Let’s connect!
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