“Mile stone for Decarbonisation”

In this interview Ina Kamps, Vice President for Offshore Growth with bp, explains the decarbonisation plans of the project developer.

REH: bp recently won two large offshore projects in Germany. Congratulations! What are your next steps?

Ina Kamps: "Thank you! These successful tenders are a milestone for bp’s decarbonisation plans in Germany and an important building block in our overall strategy. We aim to use renewable electricity to meet the huge demand that we’re expecting in our production operations. This includes the production of green hydrogen and biofuels, the expansion of e-Mobility and the decarbonisation of refineries, for example. We recently expanded our Hamburg site to further advance lower-carbon energy activities, including offshore wind and the expansion of the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. bp will lead the development, construction and operation of the two offshore wind projects in Germany, with grid connection scheduled for late 2030."

REH: In other countries, such as the UK, you’re already extremely active in the offshore wind sector. What is your overall commitment in Europe?

Ina Kamps: "We’ve set ourselves extremely ambitious targets and aim to occupy a leading position in the global offshore wind energy sector. Thanks to the successful tenders in Germany, bp has expanded its global offshore wind project pipeline to 9.2 gigawatts net (14 GW including partners). The two offshore wind farms in the North Sea off the German coast are making a significant contribution to Germany’s offshore targets (30 GW by 2030). In England and Scotland, we aim to contribute to the local renewable energy targets thanks to three additional offshore wind farms in the Irish and North Sea."

REH: bp recently made significant changes to its corporate philosophy. Could you please explain this to our readers? What is the fundamental paradigm shift?

Ina Kamps: "Back in 2020, bp set itself the target of becoming a net-zero company by 2050 at the latest. We’re investing heavily in Germany’s energy transition and that of our company – from generating electricity from renewable energies, through the decarbonisation of road transport, to our refineries. Our existing major business areas are being transformed, driven by green hydrogen, biofuels and offshore wind power, for example. This is guided by our ‘AND, not OR’ strategy - i.e. accelerating the energy transition on the one hand and ensuring security of supply on the other. We’ve announced that we’re investing up to EUR 10 billion across our various business areas in Germany by 2030. bp’s core business areas – the production and sale of refinery products – will therefore be supplemented by increasingly lower-carbon business areas."

REH: bp is also a member of our Renewable Energy Hamburg Cluster Agency. What do you expect from membership of a regional network such as EEHH? How would you like to be involved?

Ina Kamps: "Hamburg is the headquarters of BP Europa SE and therefore extremely important to us. For us, EEHH membership means networking in the renewables sector in Hamburg, as well as in the political and business arenas. Here in Hamburg, the economic power of renewable energies is particularly noticeable. As a member, we feel extremely well accepted and included. The network provides excellent event formats. However, we don’t just want to be a passive member and are also happy to be actively involved in the network and share our experience of offshore wind, hydrogen, etc."

Thank you very much for your time!