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About us Faculty of Law Research Centres of Expertise Groningen Centre of Energy Law and Sustainability Projects

Externally funded research projects

European funded projects

externally funded research projects

POCITYF (2019-2023)

The POCITYF project aims to create Positive Energy Districts (PEDs) in the two lighthouse cities Alkmaar and Evora. One of the project aims is to focus on the energy transition in relation to cultural heritage buildings and districts, which is why two cities with a rich cultural heritage have been chosen. GCELS contributes to this project by researching the legal and regulatory framework for the changes proposed within the POCITYF framework, including positive energy buildings (PEBs), peer to peer energy trading, vehicle to grid solutions and other innovative technologies. Project website: www.pocityf.eu

Researchers: Ceciel Nieuwenhout, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp and Kars de Graaf


SMILE - Smart Islands Energy System (2017-2021)

The Smart Islands Energy System (SMILE) project is a collaboration of nineteen partners from various European countries and is funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme. The project will demonstrate nine different smart grid technologies on three different islands (Madeira, the Orkneys and Samsø). The end goal of the project is to foster the market introduction of these nine technologies. Postdoc Romain Mauger and Professor Martha Roggenkamp are responsible for the legal part of the project, in particular working on energy storage, power to heat, microgrids and local grid balancing regulation issues, both at EU and national levels. Project website: http://www.h2020smile.eu/

Researchers: Romain Mauger and Martha Roggenkamp


ALIGN-CCUS (2017-2020)

The ALIGN-CCUS (ALIGN) project is a European Research Area (ERA) project, which is nonetheless linked to H2020. It focuses on carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) and aims to accelerate the transition of current industry and power sectors into a future of continued economic activity and low-carbon emissions. ALIGN’s objectives are designed to enable an acceleration of CCUS in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Norway, Germany and Romania. PhD candidate Joris Gazendam and Professor Martha Roggenkamp analyze several related regulatory issues, including the legal framework for the re-use of offshore installations and pipelines for the purpose of CCS. Project website: https://www.alignccus.eu/

Researchers: Joris Gazendam and Martha Roggenkamp


PROMOTioN - Progress on Meshed HVDC Offshore Transmission Networks (2016-2020)

PROMOTioN is a Horizon 2020 project focusing on the development of an offshore electricity grid in the North Sea. The project takes into account technical as well as regulatory aspects. Within the regulatory part, PhD candidate Ceciel Nieuwenhout and Professor Martha Roggenkamp focus on how to address the legal barriers that currently hold back the development of an offshore grid. Project website: www.promotion-offshore.net

Researchers: Ceciel Nieuwenhout, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp


STORE&GO - Power-to-Gas (2016-2020)

STORE&GO is a Horizon 2020 project in which 27 partners from 6 European countries collaborate to integrate Power-to-Gas technology in the future energy system. The University of Groningen is providing environmental, economic, and legal analysis within the project. PhD candidate Gijs Kreeft has executed a review of European and national legislation (Germany, Italy, and Switzerland) which may hinder or promote the deployment of Power-to-Gas in an energy system with high shares of renewable energy. His reports are available on the project website: www.storeandgo.info

Researchers: Gijs Kreeft, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp and Ruven Fleming


Nationally funded projects

RESPECT and RESPECT+ (2020-2024)

Renewable energy projects often face public resistance, especially if people feel excluded from the decision making. Public participation early in the decision-making process could lead to more socially acceptable energy projects. However, public participation is currently focused on local energy projects, while important decisions are made at macro level in policy visions, plans, and programmes. This may reduce public influence and fuel public resistance. One solution is to include public participation in macro-level decision making. Yet, little is known about how this can be done and how this would affect the acceptability of energy projects. In RESPE

CT and RESPECT+ projects, we develop a novel, interdisciplinary approach on how to optimise public participation at all levels of decision making to reach more socially acceptable decisions. The RESPECT project is funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and the RESPECT+ project is founded by the New Energy Coalition (NEC).

Researchers: Edwin Alblas, Lu Liu, Goda Perlaviciute and Lorenzo Squintani


Havenschets Project (2019-2020)

The Havenschets Project is a TKI-funded research project that looks at the future roles of Dutch ports regarding conversion, transport and storage of the energy produced in the North Sea. The basis of the study lies in the projected available capacity for energy production towards 2050 in the North Sea. This energy must eventually be brought to shore in order to be available for final use further inland at the right time, and in the right form and quality. Researcher Liv Malin Andreasson, Professor Kars de Graaf and Professor Martha Roggenkamp are responsible for the legal part of the project, focusing on the applicable regulations for the landing of electricity generated at sea and its possible conversion within port regions.

Researchers: Liv Malin Andreasson, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp and Kars de Graaf


North Sea Energy (2017-2022)

North Sea Energy is a TKI-funded research project that consists of several phases. So far two phases have been concluded: NSE2 and NSE3. The project considers the possibilities to promote the North Sea as a low carbon energy region. The research has, inter alia, focused on offshore system integration and the production and transport of green hydrogen offshore. All projects have taken a multidisciplinary approach. Project website: https://north-sea-energy.eu/en/home/

NSE2 Researchers: Dinand Drankier, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp

NSE3 Researchers: Liv Malin Andreasson, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp
NSE4 Researchers: Lisa van Nieuwkoop, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp


PhD@Sea (2020-2024)

In order to meet the challenge relating to the ambition to establish 75 GW offshore wind capacity on the Dutch continental shelf, this project analyses the feasibility of implementing offshore energy storage through electrical pumped storage and hydrogen conversion and of novel methods to transport electricity and/or hydrogen to shore in the Dutch North Sea. Feasibility is studied from a technical, economic, legal and spatial perspective, targeting joined interdisciplinary policy recommendations. PhD candidate Liv Malin Andreasson focuses on the development of an enabling legal framework for offshore storage and alternative transport facilities.

Researchers: Liv Malin Andreasson, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp and Edwin Woerdman


Renewable Energy in the Making – Russian and Dutch Perspectives on the Future of Renewable Energy Regulation (2020-2021)

The two-day conference facilitates interchange of ideas and lessons learned concerning the role of renewable energy sources in the energy transition from the Russian and the Dutch perspective. The conference focuses on the role of the legal framework in the energy transition. A common trait of the two countries is the historic reliance on hydrocarbons, and therefore, the production and use of renewable energy sources is slow. Topics included in this conference are renewable energy support schemes, greening of gas supplies, regulation of local energy systems and local energy communities, and finally the regulation of heat networks and heat supply.

Main applicants: Martha Roggenkamp, Ruven Fleming and Ceciel Nieuwenhout


SEREH - Smart Energy Region Emmen-Haren (2018-2021)

The SEREH project is initiated by the Municipality of Emmen (Netherlands) and the city of Haren (Germany), and aims to create the preconditions for the realization of a decentralized, cross-border and sustainable energy market. With a cross-border connection at distribution grid level, the demand and supply of sustainable electricity can be better matched at the regional level – a unique project in Europe. GCELS is leading the legislative work package within the SEREH project by addressing the legal framework for a cross-border local energy market. Legal topics include the EU and national legal frameworks on the energy sector and specifically on the development of renewable energy projects, the construction of cross-border connections at distribution grid level, storage, and also the role of consumers and possible participation models.

Researchers: Lea Diestelmeier and Martha Roggenkamp


Water-Energy-Food communities in South Africa: multi-actor nexus governance for social justice? (2021-2024)

This project is funded by NWO and the South African National Research Foundation (NRF) and involves research on the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus in South Africa. The consortium consists of two Dutch universities (the Utrecht University and the University of Groningen), two South African universities (the North-West University and the University of Fort Hare) and the World Wide Fund for Nature in South Africa (SA). The research project considers the decision making processes relating to the increasing demands for and production of energy, water and food and the consequences for social justice. Inspired by recently adopted EU legislation for energy communities, the project introduces the concept of WEF communities. GCELS investigates the legal framework governing energy communities and their consequences for social justice at EU level and in some EU member states and participates in a comparative analysis of applicable EU and SA legislation in order to gain insight in the legal challenges and opportunities for WEF communities.

Researcher: Romain Mauger , supervised by Martha Roggenkamp


DISPATCH - Distributed Intelligence for Smart Power routing and mATCHing and DISPATCH+ (2014-2018)

This multidisciplinary research project is part of the NWO project on Uncertainty Reduction in Smart Energy Systems (URSES). Its consortium consists of three research partners (University of Groningen, Eindhoven University of Technology and Twente University) and a substantial number of companies, including Essent, Eneco, Statkraft, Alliander, Enexis, Cofely, IBM, DNV GL and TenneT. The objective of the DISPATCH project is to integrate demand-side management into the current electricity system by means of a flexibility market. PhD researcher Dirk Kuiken studies the legal aspects of this integration.

DISPATCH+ aims to develop feasible solutions for solving metropolitan energy supply issues based on cutting-edge research results from the aforementioned DISPATCH project. It focuses on validation of DISPATCH’s advanced scheduling and control mechanisms to tackle specific challenges of Amsterdam ArenA and its role in the local flexibility market. Postdoc Heyd Fernandes Más analyzes the possibilities for the participation of ArenA as a flexibility buyer and/or seller and studies viable interactions between the ArenA (as a large customer) and Liander (as its DSO). Project website: https://www.nwo.nl/(...)cten/i/56/11256.html

Researchers: Dirk Kuiken and Heyd Fernandes Más, supervised by Martha Roggenkamp and Hans Vedder


SmaRds - Smart Regimes for Smart Grids (2014-2018)

This research is part of the NWO project on Uncertainty Reduction in Smart Energy Systems (URSES). SmaRds aims to create an integrated regime that addresses two behavioural uncertainties that impede smart grid developments: the legal design of emerging organisational settings in smart grids and the policy design of smart grid implementation in municipalities. PhD candidate Lea Diestelmeier focuses on the development of a legal framework which enables and incentivises the integration of smart grid technology and management in local energy systems. Project website: https://www.nwo.nl/(...)cten/i/40/11240.html

Researchers: Lea Diestelmeier, supervised by Hans Vedder and Martha Roggenkamp


EDGaR - Understanding Gas Sector Intra- and Inter-market Interactions (2010-2015)

This project is funded by Energy Delta Gas Research (EDGaR) and aims to understand gas sector intra- and inter-market interactions, in collaboration with Delft University of Technology and ECN. To that end, transaction data in the EU Emissions Trading System are analyzed to establish how and when power and gas companies traded on the European carbon market. Moreover, the legal competences of gas and electricity regulators (NRAs) in the EU are analyzed from an efficiency perspective.

Researchers: Thijs (M.A.P.) Jong, supervised by Oscar Couwenberg and Edwin Woerdman


Other externally funded projects

Green Deal Energy Charter Treaty (2015-2019)

In this project PhD candidate Cees Verburg focuses on investment promotion and protection on the basis of the Energy Charter Treaty with a specific emphasis on renewable energy investments. This legal research project is made possible with Green Deal government funding, in association with law firm Stibbe and the Dutch Energy Law Association (NeVER).

Researchers: Cees Verburg, supervised Martha Roggenkamp and Marcel Brus

Last modified:10 July 2023 07.16 a.m.