UK and Norway unite for green partnership

The UK and Norway have announced a landmark Green Industrial Partnership, aiming to harness clean energy innovations, drive economic growth, and create thousands of skilled jobs. This collaboration strengthens the longstanding relationship between the two countries, with a shared ambition to lead the global green transition.

Key Highlights:

• Joint Clean Energy Innovations: Enhanced cooperation across sectors, including carbon capture, usage, and storage (CCUS) and offshore wind.
• Job Creation: Thousands of new skilled jobs will be generated in industrial heartlands and coastal areas, particularly through cross-border carbon transport and storage projects in the North Sea.
• Energy Security: The partnership supports the UK’s goal to secure homegrown energy and achieve clean energy superpower status by 2030.

Clean energy projects driving the partnership

Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasised the transformative potential of the partnership during a visit to a Norwegian carbon transport and storage facility. The project highlights how similar UK initiatives could boost regional economies, deliver clean energy, and support industrial revitalization.

This announcement builds on recent milestones:

• Northern Endurance Partnership and Net Zero Teesside: UK’s first carbon capture contracts, spearheaded by BP and Equinor, will deliver clean energy to up to one million homes by 2028 and create thousands of jobs.
• Green Volt Floating Offshore Windfarm: A UK-Norway joint venture off Scotland’s northeast coast, this pioneering project is Europe’s first major commercial floating windfarm.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer noted: “This partnership will allow us to seize the opportunities of a new era of clean energy, reigniting industrial heartlands and securing our energy future. By working with Norway, we will boost jobs, cut emissions, and ensure resilience against global energy price shocks.”

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre added: “Our collaboration with the UK will create green jobs, drive innovation, and strengthen our joint efforts to cut emissions. With over 20 years of shared expertise in carbon capture and storage, this partnership will further our common goals for a sustainable future.”

Focus on North Sea Development

The two nations will also address gaps in developing the North Sea as a hub for carbon storage and work towards a bilateral agreement on cross-border CO₂ transport under the London Protocol.

Building on Green Momentum

The partnership is part of the UK’s broader push to accelerate the green transition, following key achievements:

• Lifting the ban on onshore wind.
• Establishing Great British Energy to champion renewable initiatives.
• Awarding record-breaking contracts for renewables.
• Leading the industrialized world in ending coal-powered electricity generation.

Additionally, Norwegian energy giant Statkraft recently began work on the Swansea Greener Grid Park, a £70M investment to stabilize the UK’s grid using low-carbon technologies. This project is one of several that Statkraft has planned, with a total investment of £1.4Bn in UK renewable energy infrastructure to date.

This Green Industrial Partnership signifies a bold commitment by the UK and Norway to work together in achieving net-zero emissions, fostering innovation, and delivering long-term benefits for their citizens and the global environment.

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