Huge Support for the Blue Quantum Leap in Bergen

This week, ocean enthusiasts gathered for the regional launch of the business plan for the Blue Quantum Leap in Bergen.

Owe Hagesæther, a member of the steering committee and leader of GCE Ocean Technology, explained how the initiative aims to unite Norwegian business environments across clusters:

– We must consolidate our efforts across regions and sectors to face the national challenges when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, providing affordable and renewable energy, and boosting exports from the mainland industry.

It is the industry clusters Energy Transition Norway in Stavanger, GCE Blue Maritime in Ålesund, and GCE Ocean Technology in Bergen, that have developed the initiative, in collaboration with the consulting firm PwC.

Support from County Councils

The County Councils from Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre and Romsdal have been important supporters so far, and Bård Sandal from Vestland County Council grabbed the mic from Hagesæther, to emphasize their support:

– It is time to move forward as Vestland, we must lead on behalf of ourselves and Norway. We need to build something that succeeds nationally and internationally, not just regionally, and we share those ambitions with you.

According to Sandal the three counties are aligned, with backing from the Vestland Council and leading politicians in all three counties, in the mindset that they must take a lead together.

Commercializing Innovation Projects

The vision behind the "Blue Quantum Leap" is to develop a world-leading ocean-based value chain in Norway.

Hagesæther emphasized that the initiative is market-oriented from the core.

– When it comes to research, we will start with a perceived problem or challenge in the society or an industry and aim to find solutions based on those issues, he explained.

– When commercialization is the motive, creating businesses and fostering new companies to enhance exports will yield positive results.

One of the methods involves running common projects and ideas through a technical committee or investment forum of major buyers from these industries within the scope.

– They will decide which innovation projects are worth investing in and further processing. This assumes they provide expertise and capital, which also forms the basis for seeking matching capital from the EU, the Research Council of Norway, and the county explained Hagesæther.

In this way, the Blue Quantime Leap aim to raise more capital from companies for significant joint projects and unlock more funds in the EU.

Requested from the industry

Helene Frihammer from NHO Vestland stated that this initiative is a welcome effort from some of our leading clusters and is also requested from the industry.

– If there is one thing we know, it is that we need to collaborate more closely on solutions to the climate and energy crisis in the future - the pace needs to increase, and decisive action must be taken, and for that, we need good systems. This will require breaking down artificial barriers between regions and clusters, Frihammer said, and here the Blue Quantum Leap is a significant contribution.

Kristin Sand Bakken from Corvus Energy said, – We believe that this initiative will strengthen Norway as a nation internationally, but it requires investment, and we believe in working together to achieve this.

Strong Local Presence

– We will continue to have a strong local presence in the clusters, working as we do today. Additionally, we can elevate our projects to larger joint projects through the Blue Quantum Leap, says Hagesæther.

The Blue Quantum Leap is based, among other things, on experience from the National Shaping Program from Canada and governance models in Denmark.

Althoug the current focus is on delivering solutions for the future energy system at sea; that is, offshore wind, CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage), and hydrogen, as well as green maritime solutions. Over time, other parts of the ocean industry may also be included.

There will be no physical headquarters for the Blue Quantum Leap. We are creating a company that will have a board and a leader - the leader must be mobile, while the clusters will be located where they are.

Read more about the Blue Quantum Leap
Watch recording from he national launch of the Blue Quantum Leap