International energy partnerships are key for the global energy transition

Energy must be secure, clean, and affordable – to achieve this goal, collaboration between stakeholders from research, business, politics, and civil society is needed. The CLIENT II funding programme supports research projects that are working with the aforementioned stakeholder groups in more than 30 countries. In addition to other key areas, the project supports the development of products, services and technologies in the fields of "climate protection/energy efficiency" and "sustainable energy systems", connects individual projects and leverages synergies between collaborative projects to jointly develop innovative solutions for the energy transition.

Expansion of offshore wind power and green hydrogen through energy partnerships

Since 2016, on behalf of the BMWK, adelphi has been supporting Germany's energy partnerships with the United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. Like Germany, Japan and South Korea are highly dependent on energy imports and have similarly energy-intensive industries. Germany regularly fosters exchange with both countries on common challenges and approaches for a successful energy transition as part of two separate partnerships. Just like in Germany, increasing energy efficiency and offshore wind power play important roles in Japan and South Korea. The same applies to green hydrogen, which has been identified as a crucial building block for achieving the Paris climate targets.

Building on previous collaborations with South Korea, such as the Korean-German Energy Partnership and the Power-to-X cooperation, adelphi, together with GOPA, is facilitating the "EU-Korea Green Partnership". In the four-year project, adelphi is supporting South Korea in achieving nationally determined contributions (NDCs), developing solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the maritime transport sector, and exchanging best practices in environmentally friendly smart city activities between cities in the EU and South Korea.

Political dialogue, best practice sharing and technology exchange

Together with Australia and New Zealand, Germany is exchanging knowledge and best practices in the fields of hydrogen, energy efficiency, renewable energy, power systems and industrial decarbonisation. The close cooperation with the USA and Canada also focuses on best practices, technical dialogue and technology cooperation. The partnership with the USA was expanded to an energy and climate partnership in May 2022, focusing on hydrogen, offshore wind, zero-emission vehicles, and cooperation with third countries. With Canada, the focus is particularly on cooperation in the areas of hydrogen, critical raw materials for the energy transition, energy security, and a just transition to renewable energies.

The partnerships not only facilitate dialogue, but also promote the expansion of international networks, creating strong alliances for the ambitious implementation of the global energy transition. The expansion of renewable energy and energy efficiency measures not only increases the energy security of individual countries but also reduces dependence on suppliers and improves export opportunities. Modern energy technologies spread through collaboration and contribute to the preservation of our natural resources.