Last week IRO returned from Houston where we attended the first Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) since 2019.
With 40 exhibitors and 94% of the usual floor space, they were nearly at full strength and as always one of the show’s largest pavilions.
IRO chose to put a spotlight on renewable energy, without losing sight of the traditional energy sources.
The Netherlands Energy Transition lounge had a central location on the pavilion, and it was opened officially by Bart van Bolhuis, head of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy at the Netherlands Embassy in Washington in attendance of Paul Jones, chairman of the OTC board of directors and our chairman Pieter van Oord. The lounge was well used and crowded throughout the whole show.
The Hatenboer Water bottle filling station in the lounge and the reusable water bottles provided by IRO, saved over 700 single use bottles.
The traditional reception at the Museum of Fine Arts hosted by the Netherlands Embassy and IRO was success with a full house and an evening of engaged talks and happy faces.
Their general impression of the exhibition was that the show was less crowded than previous editions, but the exhibitors indicated that although the quantity was less, the quality of the visitors was good. A good sign is that nearly all exhibitors have indicated that they will join the Netherlands Pavilion at the OTC next year.
They are in the process of evaluating and have sent out a questionnaire, of which the aggregated remarks and recommendations also will be shared with the OTC organization.
IRO look forward to next year’s edition. The application window for OTC 2023 probably will be in June, so stay tuned!
