The European Commission sent a document to the EU Member States on 14 October expressing its intention to renew the political declaration on the North Seas Energy Cooperation (NSEC).
Signed in June 2016 by nine European countries (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden) and the Commission, this non-binding declaration aims to support the development of the grid and the exploitation of the renewable energy potential in the North Sea by strengthening the cooperation of the signatory parties.
According to the Commission document obtained by EUROPE, the nine signatory countries and the EU institution plan to sign a new non-binding political declaration at a ministerial meeting on 2 December to align the objectives of regional cooperation with the changing political context since 2016.
The renewed cooperation would include the development and implementation of concrete joint and interdependent offshore wind projects in the region and the development of a common long-term vision of the role of offshore renewables in meeting the 2050 energy and climate goals in the North Sea countries.
“The renewed Declaration records a political intent alone, not intended to establish any new legal commitments nor to replace or modify any existing legal obligations”, the document says.
See the Commission document: https://bit.ly/3ARWKfA (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)