UK workers and businesses will benefit from a new partnership with Norway signed and more investments into the UK’s clean energy future.
This week, Ed Miliband visited Oslo and secured a green industry partnership with Norwegian counterparts, Terrier Arland and Cecily Mirces, meeting Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gars Stole.
Miliband also met many energy companies, deepened bilateral relations and advocated for clean energy investment in the UK.
Norway is a key ally in ensuring energy security in the UK, providing clean, safe and inexpensive power to UK families while ensuring new clean energy manufacturing jobs through planning for change.
How the UK and Norway cooperate with renewable energy
This ambitious partnership has bolstered the longstanding collaboration between the UK and Norway on clean energy and is one of the key deliverables of the prominent strategic partnership between Kiel’s Preferred and Norwegian Prime Minister Stohua.
It focuses on key areas supporting the development of renewable energy. These include developing offshore wind and grids, collaborations on protecting offshore infrastructure in the UK and Norway, and reducing barriers to developing a North Sea hub for cross-border storage of carbon dioxide.
This is based on the government’s purpose of the North Sea being at the heart of the UK’s clean energy future and promoting economic growth.
“Energy security is national security, and only by working with key partners like Norway can we accelerate the clean power we control and get off the fossil fuel roller coaster in these unstable times,” explained Miliband.
“We can invest in a clean energy future and take advantage of future opportunities in the North Sea.
The role of the North Sea in the clean energy transition
It is estimated that the UK oceans could store up to 78 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide. This partnership could help support employment across Europe and help unlock it to reduce emissions.
Research also suggests that close cooperation on the North Sea’s clean energy transition could lower the bill, creating up to 51,000 jobs and bringing up to £36 billion for the UK economy.
By 2030, the North Sea could provide up to 120GW of offshore wind power. This will contribute to the UK and Europe’s energy security in a volatile world, creating great export opportunities for British companies.
Norwegian Energy Minister Terje Aasland said:
“Today, we are extremely pleased to have established a future-looking partnership to promote green transitions and further strengthen collaboration between the two countries.”
Norway is a key energy partner in the UK, and the new partnership is based on decades of cooperation and mutual commitment to support the development of the UK’s offshore sector in the North Sea.
By working with European partners to convert the North Sea Basin into a low-carbon and renewable energy powerhouse, the UK can accelerate the global energy transition and lead efforts to combat climate change at global stages.
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