Brussels, 06/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - On the sidelines of the Energy Council of 3 December, nine member states of the EU plus Norway signed a cooperation agreement to continue the development of offshore wind parks in the Northern Seas (North Sea, English Channel, Celtic sea and Irish Sea) over an area of nearly 760 000 km2. “This agreement represents an important step forward for renewable energies, as the European offshore energy potential surpasses the oil capacities of the Middle East”, the Belgian Presidency of the Council notes in a press release. Germany, Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Norway will work together, to a specific timetable, to coordinate the investments to be made in favour of these interconnections. The agreement is supported by the national energy regulators, the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) and the transmission system operators belonging to ENTSO-E. The 10 countries involved must seek solutions to the technical and administrative problems cropping up in the framework of planning this energy transport network and its use. Three working groups bringing together the stakeholders will report to the Energy Council twice a year. The offshore wind energy potential in the seas of the North is considerable, outstripping the oil equivalent of the Middle East. According to initial estimates, 150 gigawatts will be installed by 2030, to produce 563 tetrawatt hours, or 16% of energy consumption in Europe. (E.H./transl.fl)