Press release
Taoiseach to attend North Sea Summit
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will join the leaders of Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Norway, and the President of the European Commission, at the North Sea Summit in Ostend, Belgium, on Monday 24 April.
Minister Eamon Ryan will also attend the Summit where he will meet with other Energy Ministers, the European Commissioner for Energy and offshore renewable energy industry representatives.
The aim of the event is to accelerate the development of offshore wind in the North Seas, including the Irish Sea, Celtic Sea and Atlantic Ocean, and to deepen regional cooperation and interconnection. The summit will result in the ‘Ostend Declaration’ aimed at turning this ambition into reality.
At the Summit the Taoiseach will engage with representatives from industry and preside over a roundtable discussion focused on how best to deepen cross country coordination and cooperation.
Speaking ahead of the Summit, the Taoiseach said:
“This summit is a valuable opportunity to engage with the leading global champions of offshore wind, share insights, and learn from best practice.
“Climate change is the most pressing global challenge of our time and the science is indisputable – we must break the link with fossil fuels. This urgency of action is reinforced by Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine.
"We must not just see climate change as a burden however; this is also a moment of opportunity. Wind energy in particular provides real opportunities for Ireland, and will help us achieve the ambition I have set for Ireland to become energy independent within a generation.
“This is our 21st century moonshot, and we will only achieve it by harnessing our untapped renewable energy resources. Ireland has some of Europe’s greatest offshore renewable energy potential, with a sea area that is seven times its landmass and the strongest regional wind speeds.
“We must all work together to create a sustainable future. We must be generation that turns the tide on climate change and biodiversity loss and leave the planet to the next generation in a better condition than we inherited it.”
Minister Ryan said:
"Ireland has a particularly critical role to play in this European energy project because we have such a large and valuable off-shore wind resource within our own seas. This is widely recognised amongst our European colleagues. We are currently holding our first Offshore wind auction for seven projects along the east and then the south coasts before going to the west where the big prize is. We’re also investing in our ports, our interconnection and our grid, putting in place the infrastructure we need to play a central role.
"This is a significant and important meeting, which follows on from the North Seas Energy Co-operation meeting we held in Dublin last year, and which is a further endorsement that the best way to provide the clean and cost-effective energy that Europe needs into the future, is to co-operate and collaborate – building strong interconnection and working together on supply chains for example."