What a European Hydrogen Week!
By Martin Hennum, Ocean Hyway Cluster
Once again, Ocean Hyway Cluster proudly partnered with the Norwegian Pavilion in Brussels during European Hydrogen Week – now bigger and better than ever, thanks to the incredible efforts of Business Norway and Innovation Norway.
This year, I had the privilege of hosting and moderating a panel discussion during the conference, Enablers for Green Shipping, in collaboration with Innovation Norway and Maritime Cleantech.
The panel focused on Offtake Ports and Infrastructure, featuring an impressive line-up of panelists: Vibeke Rasmussen, Benjamin Weinacht, Gilles Decan, and Malte Piontek.
Key takeaways from the panel:
More collaboration: Between the public and private sectors, all relevant stakeholders at an early stage, and across local, regional, national, and international levels
Safety: Managing requirements, standards, and regulations on safety is critical, but this is already well-handled today
Pricing: A pricing mechanism is still needed
Action: It’s time to move from words to action – and at a faster pace than ever!
A big thank you to Ammonia Europe, Sveinung Oftedal from the Ministry of Climate and Environment for insights on international policy development, and DNV for shedding light on green corridors in the Nordics. We are all looking forward to the report early next year!
I also had the opportunity of meeting State Secretary Tomas Norvoll from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries. We discussed the pivotal role of our members in the international shipping industry’s transition and the significance of Europe, which accounts for around 80% of Norway’s exports.
Catching up with Vibeke Hagelsteen brought back wonderful memories from our Erasmus days in Brussels – a personal highlight of the trip.
Finally, I want to thank Höegh Autoliners, Yara Clean Ammonia, CMB.TECH, and Port of Antwerp-Bruges for their active contributions.
Kudos also to Innovation Norway, our members, the Norwegian Embassy in Brussels, and Ambassador Anders H. Eide for a fantastic reception!
