Marine renewable energies in areas beyond national jurisdiction: legal answers to new environmental and governing challenges

Roughly 64% of our oceans are marine areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ), i.e. the international seabed area (Area) and the high seas.

This extensive area has unparalleled potential for the use of marine renewable energies (MREs) to provide energy security and competitiveness (i.e. creation of jobs and economic development) to the States as well as for the fight against climate change at a global scale.

Accordingly, States are becoming increasingly interested in the economic and climate change mitigation potential in ABNJ.

At the same time, however, the expansion of MREs into marine ABNJ as well as the environmental impacts associated with their development can entail new risks and threats to security and biodiversity due to the significant regulatory challenges and governance gaps in ABNJ.This project aims to enhance the sustainable development of MREs in ABNJ in a global and European regional context.

To achieve this, the project will analyse the ability of the global and European regional regulatory frameworks for the development of MREs and the protection of the environment related to their development in ABNJ, as well as will explore new forms of governance through global energy agencies (IRENA and IEA).As a result, this project will shed light on normative questions related to governance, sovereignty and policy-making considering global and regional forms of governance of MREs in ABNJ, which will significantly contribute to advancing and strengthening the renewable energy and related environmental governance in ABNJ as well as to opening-up discussions and debates on this issue within academics, state officials negotiating the UN treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in ABNJ, professionals, the MRE industry and the wider community.