Board Members of a New Norwegian “Supercluster” Shared Perspectives at Arendalsuka

Strong industrial voices are set to help realise Blått Kvantesprang’s supercluster vision.

Written by Karianne Skjæveland, Communication Manager, ETN. Translated by ChatGPT

Arendalsuka, August 11 – How can Norway catch up with our Nordic neighbors in innovation and the energy transition?

That was the question framing the discussion when Tor Arnesen and Owe Hagesæther – respectively Chair and CEO of Blått Kvantesprang – invited participants to a panel discussion on board the Rygerelektra during Arendalsuka.

“We are facing significant challenges in our most important industries,” said Owe Hagesæther in his opening remarks.

He pointed to recent analyses pointing in the same direction: Norway is falling behind.

The European Innovation Scoreboard concludes that Norway ranks lowest in Scandinavia for commercialisation of research and innovation. We are losing ground both in the Nordic region and in Europe – which, in turn, is losing position to Asia and America.

The NHO report "The Road to Growth”, based on the so-called Draghi report, paints a similar picture:

The energy transition is progressing too slowly, and Norway is not succeeding well enough in converting research into profitable business development.

"Of course we need basic research, but more of our research must start from concrete challenges in society and industry,” Hagesæther emphasised.

Tor Arnesen followed up:

“Now more than ever, we need a united, national effort to develop smarter and more cost-effective solutions in offshore wind, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage (CCS), and other energy technologies.”

Arnesen and Hagesæther together represent more than 300 companies through the regional clusters Energy Transition Norway and GCE Ocean Technology. The plan is to merge their resources into a super cluster that combines ETN’s technical committee of operators – which evaluates and supports innovation projects – with GCE Ocean Technology’s scaling programmes, developed to mature and commercialise technology.

Insights from the Panel

The need for a supercluster to accelerate the energy transition has been raised before at Norway’s most important meeting arena for politics and business.

This year, representatives from a newly constituted supercluster board – a mix of young talent and experienced industry veterans who know what it takes to create growth – shared their perspectives in the conversation about Blått Kvantesprang onboard the Rygerelektra.

Moderator Cecilie Sælen, CEO of CCB Subsea, board member of Offshore Norway, and board member of the new supercluster, received the following key points from the panel:

Ståle Tungesvik, VP Safety and Sustainability, Equinor – board member of Blått Kvantesprang: Emphasised that the energy sector needs government support to develop new technology, and that Equinor is ready to contribute resources and financial support to a super cluster.

Elisabeth Holvik, Chief Economist, SpareBank 1: Stressed that conditions for private risk capital should be greatly improved, but until that happens, the state should fund part of the investment to attract private capital. Highlighted the urgent need to speed up decision-making processes. We are competing with the US and China, which have significantly increased their pace and facilitation.

Aina Berg, Acting Executive VP Climate and Environment, NORCE – board member of Blått Kvantesprang: Highlighted culture change as key – research and innovation must be seen as an investment in future competitiveness, not a cost – and noted that coordination in clusters saves time and increases impact.

Kristoffer André Hansen, State Secretary (Labour Party), Ministry of Climate and Environment, and Tom Huuse, Managing Director and Chair of Baker Hughes Norway, also took part in the discussion, which ended in a clear consensus:

Norway must accelerate the energy transition through closer collaboration between research, industry, and government.

A supercluster combining the strengths of ETN and GCE Ocean Technology could become a powerful tool to develop and scale new energy technology – but it will require both private capital and government investment.