Eneco Green Energy Summit

Last week, Walpole Partnership’s Ingmar Hermans attended the Eneco Belgium Green Energy Summit in Ghent, for a timely and thought-provoking exchange on leadership, energy transition, and Europe’s long-term direction.

In a world shaped by VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity & Ambiguity) Eneco’s leadership articulated three strategic choices that strongly resonated:

1) Playing the EU long game – aligning the energy transition with industrial resilience and competitiveness
2) Supporting national governments – through climate plans, tax shifts, and renewable electricity infrastructure
3) Energy intelligence for organisations – delivering the right energy at the right time while enabling durable asset investment

The keynote addresses from Kees-Jan Rameau and Sandrine Dixson-Declève stood out for their clarity and conviction. Their messages went well beyond technology, addressing the deeper system challenges we face including planetary boundaries, affordability, governance, and the widening disconnect between today’s economic models and societal realities.

A clear call to action emerged:
– Green AND AI must progress together, responsibly and with purpose
– Clean energy must be affordable to bring people and organisations along
– Leadership today requires corporate courage, not denial or delay

As Eneco put it, “When the world gets messy, we get smart.”

At Walpole Partnership, we are actively translating this thinking into action. Together with Lieven Vanstraelen, CEO of Ainglie, we are building a clear, non-exclusive entry point for organisations to start their journey toward affordable Energy Efficiency – reducing demand first, optimising systems, and enabling smarter energy use before new generation.

Because the best energy is the energy we don’t use, Energy Efficiency remains the fastest, fairest way to scale impact across organisations of all sizes.
We look forward to continuing the dialogue and collaboration with Eneco, Ainglie, policymakers, and industry leaders to turn ambition into practical, inclusive progress.