\n Published on
\n 26\/01\/2026 – 13:52 GMT+1\n <\/p>\n
Almost a dozen countries have rallied together to get off the \u201cfossil fuel rollercoaster\u201d and transform the wind energy<\/a> sector. <\/p>\n Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK will today (26 January) sign the Hamburg Declaration \u2013 a landmark commitment to deliver 100GW of joint offshore wind projects across shared North Sea waters by 2050. This is enough electricity to power around 143 million homes.<\/p>\n The \u20ac9.5 billion pact aims to turn the North Sea into the world\u2019s \u201clargest clean energy reservoir\u201d and mobilise \u20ac1 trillion of capital in Europe. It is also expected to create more than 90,000 jobs and reduce power production costs by 30 per cent in the next 15 years.<\/p>\n The Hamburg Declaration comes just days after Donald Trump<\/a> dubbed countries investing in wind power as \u201closers\u201d.<\/p>\n How the North Sea will become a haven for wind power<\/p>\n Three years ago, North Sea nations pledged to build 300GW of offshore wind in the North Sea by 2050 in response to Putin\u2019s illegal invasion of Ukraine and \u201cweaponisation\u201d of Europe\u2019s energy supplies. <\/p>\n A third of that is now slated to come from joint clean-energy projects. These will include new offshore wind \u201chybrid assets\u201d \u2013 wind farms at sea that are directly connected to more than one country through multi-purpose interconnectors (MPIs).<\/p>\n There is already a network of undersea cables that connect the electricity grids of European countries, but the Hamburg Declaration marks the first time that wind farms<\/a> will be directly linked to multiple nations. <\/p>\n In a joint statement, industry body RenewableUK and National Grid Ventures \u2013 the commercial development arm of the UK\u2019s National Grid \u2013 say using MPIs would reduce the amount of infrastructure needed to transport electricity, slashing the impact on coastal communities and the environment. <\/p>\n However, interconnectors have proved controversial in Norway following concerns that power generated from MPIs could be sold to foreign countries. This stops energy bills from going down for residents and reduces their energy supplies.<\/p>\n To prevent this from happening, governments have started to bring in strict new rules banning electricity exports when domestic supply could be at risk.<\/p>\n Getting off the \u2018fossil fuel rollercoaster\u2019<\/p>\n