Ocean energy - evaluation of EU renewable power generation & policy
Date: 2020-05-20
Institutions: Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, European Commission
Subjects: maritime transport



PART-2020-111678V1.docx











EVALUATION / FITNESS CHECK ROADMAP  






Title of the evaluation




Ocean energy - evaluation of EU renewable power generation & policy






Lead DG – responsible unit 




DG MARE.A.2






Indicative Planning 


(planned start date and completion date)




Q1 2020-Q4 2020






Additional Information




https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/policy/ocean_energy_en 







The Roadmap is provided for information purposes only. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on its final content. All elements of the initiative described by the document, including its timing, are subject to change.









A. Context, purpose and scope of the evaluation






Context






Ocean energy covers a set of technologies that aims to harness the energy from tides, currents, waves, sea temperature and salinity gradients. The EU is global leader in ocean energy technologies
                           I
. 


Ocean energy could provide clean, predictable, indigenous and reliable energy and contribute to the EU's objective of reaching a share of renewables of at least 32% of the EU’s gross final consumption by 2030
                           II
 and to decarbonise the EU economy by 2050
III
.


The Commission adopted in 2014 a Communication on Blue Energy
                           IV
, which recognised the immense potential of harnessing the power of our seas and oceans. The industry and stakeholders led Ocean Energy Strategic Roadmap “Building Ocean Energy for Europe” 
                           V
 published in November 2016 identified priority actions in the field of research and innovation, demonstration and pre-commercial development, financing, environmental monitoring and consenting.


This review process will deliver on the commitment to take stock the state of development of ocean energy in the EU by 2020
VI
. It will take into account the evaluation and further development of the EU's general policy towards renewable energy development and energy technology policy.






Purpose and scope






The evaluation aims to take stock of the progress and learn about the state of development of ocean energy sector during the time period of 2014-2020. It will also help identifying possible future improvements of policies and funding mechanisms and to consolidate relevant schemes and approaches that are currently implemented. It may be used as evidence base for a possible future impact assessment.


It will cover all EU member states with a main focus on those active in the ocean energy sector: having policies, research programme, good natural resources, test centres or companies. Development in third countries will also considered.


The evaluation will also assess the market situation and the state of technology development. 


It will document to what extent the Blue Energy Communication and the recommendations of the Ocean Energy Roadmap were appropriate to support the uptake of ocean energy and how successful they were. It will look at the relationship between the Blue Energy Communication and the wider EU policy context in particular linked to renewables and innovation. 






B. Better regulation






Consultation of citizens and stakeholders






The European Commission will launch a public consultation to gather the opinions of the broader stakeholder community on the Ocean Energy communication, and to take stock of ocean energy development, investment and capacity in Europe. 


A questionnaire will be prepared to allow all categories of stakeholders to provide meaningful input. The stakeholders who wish to share more detailed information will be allowed to do so thanks to the proposed questionnaire format, which also includes open-ended questions. In addition, the possibility to upload position papers will be included.


The public consultation is expected to be launched in the second trimester 2020 and will be open to all EU citizens for 12 week. The replies can be made in any of the 24 official EU languages.


It will be complemented by targeted stakeholders consultation with structured interviews with questionnaire.. It aims at gathering views, insights and information on the progress made by the ocean energy sector since the publication of the Ocean Energy Communication, including by considering the developments in the wider EU policies and instruments affecting and supporting ocean energy adopted since then. The key stakeholders to be consulted comprise the public sector (EU institutions and bodies, International organisations, Member State and regions active in the sector, public investment funds), private sector (industry representatives, technology developers, insurance and private investment actors), research and cluster organisations, NGOs and civil society.


The consultation will be promoted in the European Commission website, announcements at events, as well as with social posts.


A synopsis report (results of all the consultation activities in relation to the evaluation) will be published as annex to the Commission Staff Working Document evaluation report. In addition, a factual summary of the public consultation will also be made available on the consultation page.






Data collection and methodology 






Relevant literature (qualitative) and databases (quantitative) will be collected and assessed for the evaluation. This includes reports from the Joint Research Centre, studies from the Commission and dedicated platforms, EU-funded ocean energy projects, regional, national and international strategies and scientific literature. 


A detailed assessment of existing database will be conducted (information contained, accessibility, timeline, completeness, reliability).


It will be complemented by inputs from stakeholders.











(I)


 
                           JRC Ocean Energy Status Report 2016 Edition https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/publication/eur-scientific-and-technical-research-reports/jrc-ocean-energy-status-report-2016-edition 




(II)


 
                            Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2018 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources




(III)


 
                           https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/strategies/2050_en 




(IV)


 
                           Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Blue Energy Action needed to deliver on the potential of ocean energy in European seas and oceans by 2020 and beyond (COM/2014/08 final). 




(V)


 https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/maritimeforum/sites/maritimeforum/files/OceanEnergyForum_Roadmap _Online_Version_08Nov2016.pdf




(VI)


 Blue Energy Communication  (COM/2014/08 final) –  6. Taking Stock of progress and related impact assessment