Noé van Hulst appointed as Director of Energy Academy Europe

Mr. Noé van Hulst (55) has been appointed as the Director of the Energy Academy Europe. The aim of the institute is to create a prominent international position for the Netherlands in energy-related issues and the transition towards a fully sustainable energy economy.

At the moment, Noé van Hulst is Secretary General of the International Energy Forum (IEF) in Saudi-Arabia, the facilitator of the global energy dialogue between energy producing and energy consuming countries, a position he has occupied for four years. Prior to this, Van Hulst was the Director for Long-Term Co-operation and Policy Analysis at the International Energy Agency in Paris and Director General for Energy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

The Academy’s first activities will start on 1 September 2012. New training courses and research projects will be developed over the next few years, in cooperation with SMEs and large companies. Over the next ten years, educational institutions, industry and the government will invest a total amount of € 100 million in the development of the Academy. The Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, Maxime Verhagen, has already allocated € 6 million to the Academy in the framework of the national Green Deal Program.

The Energy Academy Europe is unique because it combines all levels of education, from vocational training to scientific education. This takes place in an environment of top-level fundamental, strategic and applied research, which is connected to a strong international network. The approach brings together all expertise in the field of humanities, science and social sciences.

With these ‘ingredients’ the Academy will make a significant contribution towards the modernization of the international energy supply. Van Hulst’s extensive international network, his knowledge of international energy issues and experience tie in perfectly with the Academy’s ambition to attract students, researchers and companies from all over the world.

Van Hulst’s appointment has been made by the Energy Academy Europe steering committee, of which Gertjan Lankhorst (CEO, GasTerra), Gerrit van Werven (director, Energy Valley Foundation), Henk Pijlman (chairman, University of Applied Sciences, Groningen) and Sibrand Poppema (chairman, University of Groningen, and chairman of the steering committee) are the members.