Witteveen+Bos and Energy Transition Centre sign collaboration agreement

Witteveen+Bos and the Energy Transition Centre (EnTranCe) signed this week a strategic collaboration agreement in Groningen. Part of this collaboration involves the opening of a Witteveen+Bos pop-up office on the Zernike Campus in Groningen. The energy transition forms the central theme of the collaboration.

With this agreement, Witteveen+Bos aims to strengthen its innovation and talent chains in the energy transition. Many more experts will be needed in the coming years if the transition is to be realised, which is why we want our current and future talent to work together on knowledge development.

At EnTranCe, we will be doing this in various innovation lines. In these lines, together with students, partners and clients, we will develop new solutions for energy transition issues such as hydrogen, energy participation, energy systems and off-shore wind, heating laws, and grid strategy.

‘An afternoon of workshops on the energy transition is not going to provide the solutions we need. For the next phase of the energy transition, we need to bring professionals and talent together in a structural way. By innovating and developing knowledge together, we can contribute to making this transition achievable.’ - Jimme Zoete (MSc), W+B ambassador for Groningen pop-up

Why Groningen?

Groningen is a leader in the energy transition in the Netherlands. With 5.7 TWh of renewable electricity (>15 % of the Netherlands), Groningen has big ambitions for the energy transition in the near future.

In recent years, Groningen has created an image of itself as a hydrogen hub (Hydrogen Valley), where Gasunie and others are working on a national hydrogen network. Also, the Northern Netherlands forms a grid reinforcement and strategy bottleneck for TenneT, Enexis and Liander. Finally, most of the gas-free neighbourhood pilot projects in Groningen have demonstrated that these are complex undertakings. For these reasons, we want to further develop our knowledge and talent in Groningen.

Why EnTranCe?

The pop-up is part of a strategic collaboration with EnTranCe, a centre of expertise on the energy transition. EnTranCe is looking for new collaboration arrangements which increase impact, acceleration and innovation in the energy transition. The collaboration with Witteveen+Bos comprises a new form that both parties together want to explore and develop.

‘The low-hanging fruit in the energy transition has already been picked. What motivates me is the big impact we can make by employing a systems perspective together to achieve integrated solutions. This is the motivation for EnTranCe to innovate jointly with various partners.’ – Marcel Koenis (drs.), Business Development Director at EnTranCe

What is a pop-up office?

Witteveen+Bos experiments with pop-up offices close to colleges, universities, innovative environments and specialist markets that are important to the organisation. In principle, these offices are temporary. They are places where Witteveen+Bos employees, students, clients and partners can meet, innovate and learn from each other in an accessible way. Following Wageningen, Groningen is our second pop-up office. Due to the corona measures, the opening of the office has been postponed for the time being.