SYMBIOSIS-Offshore Renewable Energy for Defence

Project Information

SYMBIOSIS

Grant agreement ID: 101077477

DOI

10.3030/101077477

Project closed

EC signature date 29 August 2022

Start date 1 October 2022

End date 31 May 2025

Funded under

• Climate, Energy and Mobility

Total cost

€ 2 000 000,00

EU contribution

€ 2 000 000,00

Coordinated by

EUROPEAN DEFENCE AGENCY
Belgium

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SYMBIOSIS (SYMBIOSIS-Offshore Renewable Energy for Defence)

Reporting period: 2024-01-01 to 2025-05-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The EU, with the world’s largest maritime space, holds significant potential for offshore renewable energy. However, much of this space is reserved for civil and military use, creating barriers—particularly due to defence concerns about the impact of renewables on operational effectiveness.

To address this, national authorities must engage with the defence community to ensure mutual understanding and enable coexistence. In this context, the European Defence Agency (EDA), in cooperation with the European Commission, launched the SYMBIOSIS project to foster secure and sustainable co-use of maritime areas.

Led by a Project Management Team and guided by an Advisory Board, SYMBIOSIS established two Communities of Users—one defence, one civilian—to identify obstacles and build consensus. The project maps defence-restricted maritime zones, assesses their suitability for renewable deployment, and examines the risks and regulatory, technological, and operational constraints.

Through simulation, evaluation, and stakeholder engagement across EU sea basins, SYMBIOSIS delivers practical solutions to support coordinated maritime planning and unlock dual-use potential.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

EDA has already managed to deliver on key aspects of the project that are considered to be foundational for the overall implementation of the project. More specifically EDA has:
1. Established the Advisory Board
The scope of establishing the Symbiosis Advisory Board is to assist the Symbiosis Project Management Team in the management, monitoring, and implementation of the project as needed. Moreover, the members of the AB will support the PMT in achieving the project’s objectives and respective goals with their expertise. The AB will also support the implementation of the project by undertaking the necessary measures to reduce existing and emerging factors that could potentially affect the projects’ outcome.

2. Has established the Community of Users ORED and OREC
The establishment of the two communities of users (ORED and OREC CoU) is to assist with their active engagement the PMT to fulfil the mission and the tasks of the Symbiosis project, as well as to implement the projects’ key findings and recommendations.
The two communities of users to be established are:
a. Offshore renewable energy defence community of users (ORED CoU): representatives and experts coming from the defence community. EDA has already the experience and expertise in establishing well-defined defence energy-related communities through two key activities (CF SEDSS -the largest European defence energy community and EDA’s Energy and Environment Working Group -EnE WG4). Therefore, the specific topic on offshore RES and its close link with defence merits the creation of a dedicated expert community of users to preserve the focus on this important topic (CoU).

b. Offshore renewable energy co-existence community of users (OREC CoU): representatives and experts coming from the civilian community. Creating sustainable conditions for the deployment and exploitation of offshore renewables in the maritime areas reserved or used by defence requires an in-depth understanding of the barriers, concerns, and plans from all the engaged stakeholders. In this respect, the civilian community has a lot to offer, hence the need to bring defence in contact with key stakeholders from the civil community to ensure a fruitful, viable, and durable Symbiosis.

3. Implemented the 1st Plenary Conference of the Symbiosis Project
The inaugural event promoting co-existence between defence activities and offshore renewable energy installations was held on 28 June 2023, in Brussels. As the first EDA Horizon Europe-funded project, Symbiosis enhances defence energy resilience and charts a path for future cooperation, amplifying the potential of offshore renewable energy within the European Union.


The website of the project: https://eda.europa.eu/what-we-do/eu-policies/symbiosis

The linked to the communication on the 1st conference: https://eda.europa.eu/news-and-events/news/2023/06/28/greater-synergies-between-offshore-energy-and-defence-needed-hears-eda-conference

The link to the Symbiosis factsheet:https://eda.europa.eu/publications-and-data/latest-publications/factsheet-symbiosis-offshore-renewable-energy-for-defence

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The SYMBIOSIS project delivered results that go beyond the state of the art by developing the first integrated simulation environment to model the interaction between offshore renewable energy installations and defence operations, notably radar performance and spatial risk. It introduced a dual-use spatial planning methodology and established structured engagement through the ORED and OREC Communities of Users.

Key Results at Project End
5 region-specific simulation setups

36 scenario-based risk analyses

Engagement of 210+ stakeholders

6 technical deliverables and 2 scientific publications in progress


SYMBIOSIS lays the foundation for secure, coordinated offshore development, bridging energy and defence priorities in EU maritime policy.

EDA-Symbiosis-Logo-Image