Martha Roggenkamp

Developing a transnational electricity infrastructure offshore: Interdependence between technical and regulatory solutions

This paper aims at identifying the options for designing an offshore electricity grid and the legal instruments to create such a grid. It will make a first attempt at presenting the technical and legal considerations which coastal states, EU and national legislators and policy makers should take into account in the coming years when planning and weighing their grid design options. By contrast to the onshore system where the current grid is the result of many decades of local, regional, national and international developments, the situation offshore is different in the sense that currently there is more or less no grid. Moreover, the legal basis for developing such a grid is different offshore than onshore. Therefore designing a system which looks beyond national interests and concepts represents a major challenge. We will discuss whether such a new development as the construction of an offshore electricity grid should be a matter of national policy or should a multilateral or international approach be preferred.

Impact of wind energy support schemes on the development of an offshore grid in the North Sea

There is significant interest in developing offshore wind energy in Europe. Offshore wind projects require large transmission and installation investments. Therefore supporting policies are essential to make these project more economically attractive. This paper presents a optimization planning framework to investigate the impact of implementing a support instrument at different stages of planning on the final grid design and installed offshore wind capacities. For a given level of wind support, the optimal plan includes the grid and offshore wind capacities. Optimal capacities are set in such a way that congestion revenue collected throughout the life time of the project pays off the investment cost of building the grid. At the same time the remuneration of the offshore wind farm recovers the initial investment cost. The model is used to investigate the impact of implementing a wind support plan on the development of the offshore grid in the North Sea. Numerical simulation results are interpreted in economic terms and demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Legal Uncertainties of Carbon Capture and Storage in the EU: The Netherlands as an Example

The new European Directive for the geological storage of CO2 aims at providing a legal framework for the development of CCS. However, the Directive does not remove all legal barriers and uncertainties. Capture, transport and storage of CO2 are covered by a large number of international, European and national regulations, resulting in various legal unknowns. These obstacles and uncertainties need to be removed in order to provide companies with a proper incentive to invest in CCS.

Petroleum Pipelines in the North Sea: Questions of Jurisdiction and Practical Solutions

This article examines the jurisdiction of states over pipelines established outside their territory. Conflicts of jurisdiction may arise when cross-border pipelines are constructed and operated in different maritime zones. These pipelines can be divided in to several categories of which the most important are the field-to-coast and the coast-to- coast pipelines. In the North Sea these pipelines are constructed on the basis of bilateral agreements between the states directly involved. These agreements illustrate the way in which possible conflicts of jurisdiction can be dealt with.

Looking Back, Looking Ahead : Gas Sector Developments in the Netherlands and the EU: from Manufactured Gas via Natural Gas to Biogas

The discovery of the gas field in Groningen became world news in 1960. Within a few years almost every household switched to natural gas and subsequently the use of manufactured gas and refinery gas came to an end. A national grid was established and cross-border connections were made in order to supply household and industrial consumers with natural gas. The oil crisis in the 1970s shifted the approach from ‘sell’ to ‘preserve’ and led to the development of numerous small gas fields, onshore as well as offshore. This situation lasted for a few decades but changed owing to a process of gas market liberalisation and policies regarding supply security and climate change. Therefore, the focus is now on renewable energy sources, such as biogas. However, in order to introduce biogas on a large scale, several obstacles need to be removed.

Regulating Offshore Energy Sources in the North Sea: Reinventing the Wheel or a Need for More Coordination?

In this article we examine the legal frameworks for developing oil, gas and wind energy in the North Sea. We discuss whether there are parallels to be seen and lessons to be learned from these different sectors and suggest that experience in the offshore petroleum sector could be used to improve the evolving legal regimes for offshore wind energy. For this purpose, we first examine the legal basis for offshore activities under the international law of the sea. Subsequently, we discuss the regulation of oil and gas exploitation and the regulation of offshore wind energy. We focus in particular on the way in which energy sources are transported to shore via pipelines and cables. We consider whether comparable decisions have been made when establishing a legal regime for offshore wind and whether lessons could still be learned. This is particularly relevant for the future when the production of offshore wind energy and the production of petroleum need to be coordinated, and when sizable amounts of offshore wind energy will be integrated into the (offshore) transmission grid.

Regulatory reforms in the Norwegian gas industry

Several important developments in the regulation of the gas industry have taken place in Norway during the past few years. The changes were inspired by the need to liberalise and internationalise this market. They relate to state participation, the removal of the centralised sale of gas and the implementation of the Gas Directive. This article reviews these three developments and some of their implications for the European gas market.