But development is still a long way off. First, companies plan to spend a few years anchoring wind energy projects locally.
INTERNAL POWER PLANTS: The Odal wind farm, of which Akershus Energi owns 33.4%, consists of 217 meter high turbines. The plant has an installed capacity of 160 megawatts overall and will be able to produce approximately 530 gigawatt hours per year, sufficient, according to the owners, to provide renewable electricity to 33,000 families. The other owners are Cloudberry, with 33.4%, and KLP, with 33.2%. Photo: Lise Åserud / NTBPublished: Published:
Right now
Power companies Hafslund and Eidsiva started a new collaboration last summer to build onshore wind power.
The goal is to develop wind energy in eastern Norway, but where exactly is not yet clear.
Now the electricity companies go one step further and enter into a partnership with Akershus Energi.
This further strengthens the local presence.
The companies have collaborated on hydropower, but this will be the first time they have collaborated on wind.
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A new licensing system is being prepared
At the same time, the framework conditions for the development of wind energy in Norway have been changed, with the introduction of the land revenue tax from 1 January and a new concession system.
Hafslund, Eidsiva and Akershus Energi believe that the conditions for realizing wind energy are now better.
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But concretely when, where and what they will not answer for the moment.
First, they must spend a lot of time anchoring plans locally.
– Getting a concession meant introducing a few more rules of the game, says director of renewable energy production Emil Orderud at Akershus Energi.
He estimates it will take “a few years” before the license is granted and companies make an investment decision.
INCLUDING WIND COOPERATION: Director of renewable energy production Emil Orderud at Akershus Energi (from left), general director Lars Tallhaug at Akershus Energi Wind and Odal Wind Power Plant, director of solar and onshore wind Anders Østby at Hafslund and director Torstein Sole-Gärtner at Eidsiva Growth. Photo: STIAN NORUM HERLOFSEN, Akershus Energy
Last year the wind energy licensing system was changed so that the municipality is required to regulate wind energy areas before a license can be granted.
– The changes have actually helped us developers make faster investment decisions when the license is in force, says Orderud.
– So waiting and waiting, which some wind energy developers have struggled with, I don’t believe it now, he adds.
– But I think it will take a few years before we get a license.
Wind “probably the most convenient”
New energy production is urgently needed if Norway is to meet its climate goals and develop new industries, several reports have highlighted in recent years.
Despite long pending processes, wind energy partners maintain their ambition to have wind turbines capable of producing energy by 2030.
Onshore wind power is probably the most cost-effective technology to build within renewable energy, says director of onshore wind and solar energy Anders Østby in Hafslund.
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Furthermore, he points out, onshore wind energy has the potential to produce energy, which is part of an energy balance discussion.
Østby sees these discussions as one of the biggest challenges ahead.
– In many social debates, the discussion is very simple, he says.
– There are supporters and opponents who cannot meet halfway and talk about real facts and circumstances. Who want to win with their message.
He sees potential in eastern forest areas
The newspaper Glåmdalen wrote this summer that Eidsiva and Hafslund are considering an area in Solør, between Elverum and Kongsvinger, for wind development.
Hafslund’s Østby says he still sees the area as relevant.
The partners don’t want to be more concrete than that, because there are no concrete plans yet.
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– We currently do not have sufficient facts to make a decision, says director Torstein Sole-Gärtner in Eidsiva growth.
– But it’s not like projects have to be completely finalized before coming out with something. Instead, we want to get out early enough so we can get good trials with local impact, she says.
At the same time, Sole-Gärtner is clear that companies see potential for wind energy in the forest areas of eastern Norway.
– Considering that the energy consumption in this region is significant, it is gratifying, says Sole-Gärtner.
You want to own and manage yourself
The collaboration itself is formalized through an agreement with the intent to create a company, in which all three companies receive an equal ownership stake.
Sole-Gärtner says that the collaboration was initiated in order to better manage local processes.
– It’s about knowing local conditions and, last but not least, also good working relationships with decision makers, in order to be able to develop the best projects and take care of local needs, says Sole-Gärtner.
– Many of the exciting projects we are looking at are located in what I would call the Akershus Energi catchment area and nearby areas. And then we are quite sure that the collaboration with Akershus Energi will allow us to develop better projects for society.
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Sole-Gärtner also points out that companies want the same thing for the development of wind projects: to own and operate them themselves.
CEO Lars Tallhaug of Akershus Energi Vind og Odal Vindkraftverk, of which Akershus Energi owns 33.4%, says it was necessary for the company to have a collaborative partner.
He points out that developing wind energy projects is a labor-intensive process.
– We have experience with wind energy, but not with development, says Tallhaug.
Emphasize shared values
Tallhaug says Akershus Energi has talked to several companies about cooperating, but is “very happy” to have succeeded.
– We are very satisfied that we can stand together as three publicly owned companies with a common value base and with the intention of remaining in this area as owners for a long time, we are very satisfied with this, says Tallhaug.
With 330 years of combined experience in energy production, the partners are keen to develop projects that meet society’s need for more energy.
– For the three of us who want to work together, there is a fundamental belief that the eastern region especially needs energy, Østby tells Hafslund.
– This is an area of deficit, and it seems that this deficit will persist for the foreseeable future, he says.
2024-01-11 10:59:32
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