PROJECT

                           

BACKGROUND

Maritime shipping and ports have high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and are among the most difficult sectors to decarbonize. Although steps are taken to change this situation, there is a need for rapid change [1].

Maritime ports are critical assets with untapped potential to contribute to Europe’s clean energy transition and independence. Due to the role of ports in countries and the global economy, they can set important economic drivers for regional development and social cohesion. While changing the emissions produced inside the port and ships are certainly needed, ports can also act as catalysts for energy generation and distribution for the rest of the community, becoming a positive agent in decarbonization across Europe.

Conceiving of ports as hubs for the energy transition underscores an emerging perspective on the ports of the future. Their natural location near renewable energy sources (e.g., offshore wind and solar power), together with their proximity to existing energy infrastructure, makes them ideal sites to become energy transition hubs [2].

OBJECTIVES

The POTENT-X project (Ports as Energy Transition Hubs) aims to transform European maritime ports into energy hubs by establishing Living Labs across Europe. These labs facilitate collaboration between stakeholders and enable the real-world testing of clean energy innovations.

A Living Lab is “a user-centered, open innovation ecosystem based on a systematic user co-creation approach, integrating resear and innovation processes in real-life communities and settings” [3],

The project will transform European ports into dynamic, sustainable energy hubs by advancing clean energy technologies and fostering digital innovation through:

 

1. Technological Advancement and Integration: Optimize renewable energy systems (wind, solar, alternative fuels) and enhance digital infrastructure through smart ports and digital twins, aiming for Technology Readiness Level 7.

 

2. Stakeholder Engagement and Societal Alignment: Foster collaboration among stakeholders to ensure societal acceptance, aligning the energy transition with societal needs and achieving Societal Readiness Level 6.

POTENT-TFL-FIGURE

PROJECT OUTLINE

WP1 - Living Lab & Network

WP1 focuses on building strong, collaborative “Living Labs” — real-world environments where ports, researchers, and communities work together to accelerate the clean energy transition across Europe’s maritime sector.

This work package brings together ports and partners to understand stakeholder needs, optimize collaboration, and create practical roadmaps for adopting sustainable energy solutions.

WP2 - Technology & Supply-chain Transitions

WP2 focuses on how ports can adapt their infrastructure, technologies, and supply chains to support the shift toward clean, zero-emission energy. It examines everything from future energy use and grid readiness to policy alignment and the development of new fuel supply chains, helping ports prepare for the next generation of sustainable maritime operations.

WP3 - Digitalization & Energy Resilience within System of Systems

WP3 focuses on the digital transformation of ports and how interconnected systems — energy, logistics, and transport — can work together to make ports smarter, more efficient, and more resilient. By combining digital tools like digital twins, data-driven risk analysis, and smart energy management, WP3 helps ports navigate the clean energy transition through innovation and connectivity.

WP4 - Social, Economic, & Policy Development

WP4 explores how ports can become not only greener but also socially inclusive and economically sustainable. It connects business innovation, urban planning, and policy development to ensure that the clean energy transition benefits people, communities, and industries alike. By bridging economic strategies, governance models, and public engagement, WP4 supports ports in becoming central hubs of sustainable regional development.

REFERENCES

[1] IPCC. (2022). Climate Change 2022 Mitigation of Climate Change. In Working Group III contribution to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003264705-7

[2] Dirzka, C., Jamasb, T., Kondratenko, K., George, P., Petrov Petkov, A., Schroer, M., Rosenov Sofev, P., Sornn-Friese, H., & Tsachkov, B. (2024). Ports as Energy Transition Hubs: An Exploratory Study (H. Sornn-Friese, Ed.). CBS Maritime. https://www.cbs.dk/files/cbs.dk/ports_as_energy_transition_hubs._an_exploratorty_study.pdf

[3] The European Network of Living Labs, ENoLL (2025). https://enoll.org/

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THe European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL)

The European Network of Living Labs (ENoLL) is an international non-profit association based in Brussels (Belgium) that aims to promote and enhance user-driven innovation ecosystems, more precisely, the Living Labs concept. ENoLL focuses on facilitating knowledge exchange, joint actions, and project partnerships among its +480 members, influencing EU policies, promoting Living Labs, and enabling their implementation worldwide.


The ENoLL network aims to create pan-European experiments and prototypes for new markets, based on the Digital Single Market. It is an open engagement platform where new business models can be co-designed, experimented with, and developed, all based on a quadruple helix approach, creating safety nets for experiments and prototypes with new roles of the public sector as enabler and catalyzer.

www.enoll.org