LIVE BLOG: Offshore Energy and Navingo Career 2021 Events

October 27, 2021, by Adnan Durakovic

Aaaaaaand scene! The 15th Navingo Career Event is in the books and, in case you were not able to join us over the past two days, the video below gives you a little taste of what it was like to be at RAI Amsterdam in person!

17.10 Closing the 14th OEEC and the 15th NCE

Anne Visser, Director of Operations at Navingo BV, and Coco Kossmann have closed the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference and the Navingo Career Event 2021.

After two days filled with face-to-face meetings, interesting talk shows, energy talks, inspiring innovations from the exhibition floor, and insights from experts, the time has come to close the curtain on this year’s edition of the two events.

Organised for the first time as a hybrid event, the OEEC/NCE provided the offshore energy industry with a chance to meet both in-person at RAI Amsterdam and online through the digital platform.

This format provided more people with a chance to get informed on the latest updates within the offshore energy industry, to exchange ideas, and to network.

For many of those attending, this was the first in-person event since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the fact which was clearly obvious to anyone present due to the high level of enthusiasm experienced during the last two days.

The next edition of the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference and the Navingo Career Event will take place on 29 and 30 November at RAI Amsterdam.

We hope to see you there again next year!

16:10 Global market updates

In this session, the updates are from Occitanie, France. The guests are: Julien Ciglar, Chef de Project Energies Marines Renouvelables at Occitanie regio agenschap AD’DOC and Marie-Laure Barois, Coordinator at Wind’OCC. They shared the current developments on the floating offshore wind in Occitanie, France.

Barois: “This event is a great opportunity to create contacts, especially strenghtening the bond between the French and Dutch companies. It’s great way to gain competence from each other in the floating offshore wind development.”

15.20 Energy transition highly attractive to young professionals, according to Robert Plat, Principal Consultant Offshore, Royal IHC

”Every time we post a vacancy which contains the phrase ‘energy transition’ in it, the number of applicants rises tenfold,” Robert Plat, Principal Consultant Offshore, Royal IHC said, adding that this is a great indicator that potential employees, especially younger generations, are eager to be part of the shift to a more sustainable future.

Speaking of OEEC, Plat pointed out that this event is a good measuring stick to gauge how far along the offshore industry is with the energy transition, and that it also provides a look into new technological advances such as new vessels, marine fuels, and other innovations.

15.15 There is still time for those attending to head out to the CV-Check stand at the Navingo Career Event section

15.00 Employer insights & tips – Live Studio

The second part of today’s Employer insights & tips included Floor Spaargaren, Project Manager Offshore at MARIN, and Karola van der Meij, Team Leader Cruise & Ferry at MARIN.

Having a passion for maritime industries is key to a successful career at MARIN, van der Meij said.

14.00 Next generation perspectives – Live Studio

This instalment of the Next Generations Perspectives session included Dione Zijp, Secretary Youth For Climate at Youth for Climate; Tessa Dool, Board Member of Youth Climate Vision, Jonge Klimaatbeweging; and Elise de Groote, Studies Applied Physics University Twente, Energietalenten.

The participants discussed the roles of their generation in the energy transition and if sustainability initiatives are part of their future professional employment.

They also shared their perspectives on how the issue of sustainability is being tackled now by employers, the governments, and globally.

The session provided an insight into how young professionals deal with the issues of the energy transition in their daily lives and what they would do if they were in positions of power.

The participants agreed that energy transition and climate change are issues that affect all generations and professions and that it will take a joint effort across the age and professional spectrum to tackle these issues.

11:00 Next generation perspectives

This Live Studio session provided young professionals and students with a chance to share their experiences in energy fields they are active in.

The programme, shaped together with student and youth associations, was part of the Navingo Career Event which runs alongside the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference.

The participants in the session were Jack Landsmeer, Chairman at A.S.V. Nautis; Floor Walterbos, a Student of Electrical Engineering at TU Delft; and Ruben de Nie, Chairman & Portfolio Manager at Young IRO & Damen.

Landsmeer: “I chose to do a study in the maritime field because it is a very wide industry. I enjoy the practical side of the work that is brought to us from the start of the study.”

Waalterbos: “I am passionate about computer engineering, the ‘chips’ to be more exact. Translating modern problems into digital solutions is what I do.”

De Nie: “If I would be in a decision-making position I would foster more collaboration. No one can do it by yourself. Creating a common vision, more partnerships and communities is important.”

10.30 SMEs MEA – Live Studio

The Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Marine Energy Alliance (MEA) session included Danny Golden, Director at Dublin Offshore.

The session shed light on specialities of this start-up, mainly marine energy systems and mooring systems for floating wind.

Duffy also pointed out that Dublin Offshore can be contacted at the Marine Energy Pavillion during OEEC.

10.00 Employer insights & tips – Live Studio

Our Live Studio programme on Day 2 started with Employer insights & tips where employers exchanged ideas with the help of Eva Brouwer, the moderator.

Representatives from Huisman Equipment and Nevesbu, a naval architecture and marine engineering company, discussed the points of attention during the recruitment process to achieve the perfect match, the lasting effects of the pandemic on the workplace, how a sustainable value chain affects jobs in the sector, and what are the must-have skills to realize the energy transition.

”We need more people to join us as the market has been good to us,” the representative from Nevesbu said, adding that anyone interested in joining the company could visit their stand at the OEEC.

The session also included several informative videos showcasing companies such as Sensing360, Protea, TWD, and others.

09.30 Introduction to day two with Navingo

Anne Visser, Director of Operations at Navingo BV, caught up with the event moderator Eva Brouwer to discuss what the day two of the OEEC and NCE will offer.

”Yesterday we had very good energy with a packed content programme. Today we can expect another day filled with sessions, networking moments, and lively interactions,” Visser said.

One of the highlights today is the Masterclass on Hydrogen from the Government of the Netherlands.

”Hydrogen is a hot topic in the energy transition and many parties are interested to learn how to make an effective use of that. There are 31 countries represented in the governmental programme and a lot of delegations are here,” said Visser.

Navingo’s Coco Kossmann and Jaap Proost also participated in the opening of the day two and shared a few insights about the content programme for today, with the overarching theme remaining the energy transition.

Kossmann gave a short tour of the Navingo Career area, where she showed the Navingo stand, the CV check stand, which will be running today as well, and some of the companies present at the Navingo Career Event.

Make sure to check the Navingo Career Podcast Area and the online platform at https://www.navingocareer.com/podcast/ where new podcasts will drop shortly.

09.15 Day two of Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference and Navingo Career Event 2021

Welcome to the second day of the Offshore Energy Exhibition and Conference, and the Navingo Career Event.

If the first day is any indicator, today will be packed full of lively debates, matchmaking, business and career opportunities, and networking.

17.00 Closing the Day One

Anne Visser, Director of Operations at Navingo BV, and Coco Kossmann, Content Creator and Host, in the company of our event moderator Eva Brouwer, have closed the first day of the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference and the Navingo Career Event 2021.

Day one of the event was filled with face-to-face meetings, interesting talk shows, energy talks, inspiring innovations from the exhibition floor and insights from experts.

Experiencing the event in a hybrid form, both in-person and in digital format, provided more people with the chance to be part of the offshore energy community gathered around energy transition.

This format allowed for participants to show proactivity by joining matchmaking sessions, the content programme, and other organised events that allowed people to connect and share knowledge, either in person or online.

Anne Visser added that OEEC happening side-by-side with the Navingo Career Event allowed Navingo BV to bring more parties together: the companies, the governmental institutions, but also the young generations who were able to express how they see the energy transition and what are their goals and expectations from organisations.

The people across the professional spectrum sharing knowledge and being able to meet in real life was great to see, said Visser.

The day two of OEEC and NCE promises to provide the same energy and enthusiasm and the team behind this live blog looks forward to another action-packed day tomorrow.

You can still register for tomorrow! https://registration.offshore-energy.biz/

In case you missed any of our sessions, you can see them at the On-Demand section of our platform.

16:30 Official networking drinks have started!

With the official part of the programme now over, the first day of OEEC is ending on a high note with networking drinks at several stands including at Navingo BV, the organiser of OEEC and NCE.

The networking drinks are sponsored by TrustLube, Scottish Development International, and Jack-Up Barge BV.

16:00 CV-Check

At the Navingo Career Event there is an opportunity to work on your application skills! Professionals from Qompas provide those interested with application tips and they check your CV and LinkdIn profile. They help by finding the unique pointers that make it stand out among all those other applicants. In addition, they can advise you on the basis of your profile which companies are eager to have you.

You will also find an overview of the available internships, graduation assignments and research projects at the partners of the Navingo Career Event. Create a profile on NavingoCareer.com and apply directly.

15.30 Next generation perspectives

Young professionals and students continue to share their view on current trends and developments. In this session, Louis van Cauwenberghe and Shayan Farrokhi from Solar Boat Team, Tom Verbist from NML and Daan Boogaardt from Neptune Energy discussed the role of sustainability in their field of expertise and future professions. They also shared how they embrace sustainability in their daily lives.

14:30 Employer insights and tips

A lot of things have changed in the recruitment process in the last time. Many things, such as the cover letter, the business cards or, in some cases the resume have become old-fashioned. What has become “new-fashioned” or more popular nowadays is the social media profile(s), or a short video to present yourself. This is the observations of Inge Vernooy-Klijberg, Talent Acquisition Lead from TenneT and Isabelle Huijgen, Corporate Recruiter from Damen Shipyards.

In the previous session, “Next Generation Perspectives”, students and graduates stressed how important it is for them to work for a company with ambitious goals for sustainability. The speakers were asked if they are ready to meet these ambitions.

Isabelle Huijgen: “We have a lot of position with high focus on sustainability so we are ready to meet the goals of the young generations.”

Inge Vernooy-Klijberg: “We noticed how people have a clear purpose and vision nowadays.”

At TenneT there are currently over 200 current positions open. Similarly, Damen Shipyards offers plenty of job opportunities for different levels of experience. Check their website for various career options or just drop by for a coffee at their stand.

13:30 Global offshore wind market update

”The future is ready for offshore wind,” Heike Winkler from Germany’s WAB during a discussion on the current state of the offshore wind industry in Germany, Poland, and the United States.

Winkler was joined by Brandon Burke from The Business Network for Offshore Wind US, Rémi Gruet from Ocean Energy Europe, and Piotr Czopek from the Polish Wind Energy Association (PWEA).

According to Burke, the Biden administration has really ”put the pedal to the metal” with the goal to develop 30 GW of operational offshore wind capacity by 2030 from the current 42 MW, describing the US offshore wind market is ”bullish”.

Czopek jokingly added that Poland is not as far along the path of offshore wind development as the US is seeing that there are currently zero wind turbines in the Polish Baltic Sea.

However, Poland plans to have 5.9 GW of operational offshore wind capacity by 2030 and 11 GW by 2040, Czopek said. He also added that the Baltic Sea has the potential to be Europe’s second largest offshore wind hub, just behind the North Sea.

The discussion also turned to the role of the governments in establishing the goals and following through on the set targets.

13:00 Marine Energy Session: Joining forces to reach the European targets for offshore renewable energy

In this session, DMEC (Dutch Marine Energy Centre), together with Xavier Guillou from DG Mare, Rebecca Pike from RWE Renewables UK, Michael Baumann from SFK Group, and Alexandre Chavarot from Coalition of Climate Resilient Investment joined the discussion on offshore renewable energy.

To realise a climate neutral energy system by 2050 that is both reliable as well as cost efficient, the EU aims to deploy 40 GW of emerging renewable technologies in our seas and oceans. Specifically for marine energy, the first 100 MW need to be realised by 2025, rapidly scaling up to 1 GW by 2030 to reach commercialisation. To achieve these ambitious targets, developers, supply chain, governments and investors need to connect and work together across sectors and countries.

Britta Schaffmeister, CEO of DMEC, kicked-off the Marine Energy Session.

”The governments, supply chain and investors need to work together, we can’t do it alone,” Schaffmeister said.

At the same time, Schaffmeister stressed that there’s a large potential for the marine energy, it is derisked and a lot of public funding is invested already.

The main question remains: What is the most important ingredient needed to make it a winning formula?

Xavier Guillou added that offshore renewables could cover 25 per cent of electricity needs by 2050.

Alexandre Chavarot pinted oyt that private finance will be easier facilitated if technologies are proven and that developers have to do a lot to mobilize private funding.

11:45 Interview with GROW Offshore Wind, David de Jager, Director, Live Studio

David, de Jager, Director of GROW talks about their joint research programme in offshore wind that initiates research and accelerates innovations.

Like many other speakers today, David agrees that there are many roads to the energy transition and that collaboration is crucial.

“We also need the fossil energy together with alternative solutions. There will be an end to fossil energy. We still need innovations in various roots,” David de Jager said.

11:00 Next generation perspectives

In ‘Next Generation Perspectives’ (young) professionals and students share their view on current trends and developments.

In this session, Sep Ursone, Commissioner of External Affairs at Gezelschap Leeghwater; Evelien de Wolff, Commissioner of External Affairs at Electrotechnische Vereeniging; and Roman van Laak, Lead CCUS Development Engineer at Neptune Energy discussed how they see the role of their profession in the energy transition.

They pointed out how initiatives on sustainability come across their field and what are the current efforts towards a sustainable future by the people in charge and decision-makers.

The participants stressed that as students they bring innovation. They have a vision to make the world more sustainable and it is important that the companies they want to work for in the future share a similar vision.

10:30 Employer insights and tips

In the ‘Employer Insights and Tips’ employers exchange ideas on the prevailing landscape of the recruitment process.

Bealien Schot, Corporate Recruiter from Huisman Equipment, and Jaap Bernsen, HR Manager from Aegir Marine touched upon a few pointers when it comes to recruitment and work.

For example, they discussed the role of sustainability at work and how becoming more sustainable affects the jobs in the sector?

They shared some tips on what recruiters pay attention to to achieve the perfect match and what are the must-have skills to realise the energy transition.

Matchmaking

It is possible to join the matchmaking programme onsite at RAI Amsterdam. Matchmaking allows you to meet, get to know each other share knowledge on various topics of interest. To make use of the matchmaking programme, register for the event and opt for the matchmaking feature.

Sander Vergroesen, Managing Director at IRO; Hans Timmers, Chairman at NWEA and Arendo Schreurs, Director at IRO have officially opened the 14^th edition of the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference.

The speakers stressed the importance of collaborating together in the energy transition. This event is an opportunity to meet other professionals in the field and discuss the accelerating of the energy transition.

Sander Vergroesen: “We are not ready with the alternatives yet. We need to come up with new innovations. We have to stay ahead of the competition and we are good at that.”

Hans Timmers: “We have to do it together. Everybody is worried about the climate change, so we need to accelerate the energy transition together.”

Arendo Schreurs: “We cannot do it alone. We have to cooperate to find answers on the difficult questions.”

We invite everyone to show a maximum proactivity in the networking moments, attend sessions and have an overall great and productive event.

The sun is up in Amsterdam, the stands are ready at RAI and OEEC is already buzzing even though we are still minutes away from the official opening.

We are minutes away from our first Energy Talks, Talk Shows, Live Studio, Showcases, Side Events, 1 on 1 Matchmaking, Round Tables, and much, much more.

If you are not attending OEEC in person, make sure to register and tune in online to what is happening in RAI Amsterdam over the next two days.

Welcome to the Live Blog! Here, we will inform you about the most significant moments from the Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference (OEEC) and the Navingo Career Event. This includes the sessions, the exhibition floor, live studio, and the networking moments.

OEEC creates the perfect opportunity for people working in the offshore energy industry to establish new business relationships and maintain the existing ones.

You can expect plenty of interaction, information, presentations, and innovations, lots of which will be live-streamed.

Stay tuned!

LIVE BLOG: Offshore Energy and Navingo Career 2021 Events

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