The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy received seven applications in its bidding round for offshore wind development in the Sørlige Nordsjø II area. The Department will now begin the job of evaluating the proposals.
“Despite significant cost increases for the global offshore wind industry recently, there are several strong players who are applying to participate in the auction round for Sørlige Nordsjø II, says Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Aasland. This is important for the government’s offshore wind efforts.”
The tender documents state that the department will prequalify a minimum of six and a maximum of eight applicants. If fewer than six applicants can be prequalified, the department will consider whether the auction should be carried out.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy announced the first competitions for project areas for offshore wind on the Norwegian continental shelf on 29 March this year. The deadline to apply to participate in the auction for offshore wind in the Sørlige Nordsjø II was 15 November 15 at noon.
Applicants must document that they meet the minimum criteria for sustainability and positive local impact. They will also be assessed on their implementation capacity, in the prequalification round.
The Department will announce which applicants are qualified to participate in the auction as soon as possible. The tentative auction date is February 2024.
The following consortiums and companies submitted applications:
- Aker Offshore Wind, BP, and Statkraft
- Equinor and RWE
- Hydroelectric Corporation
- Mingyang Smart Energy
- Norseman Wind
- Parkwind and Ingka
- Shell, Lyse, and Eviny
Background
The government’s target is to allocate areas for 30 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040. In 2020, the first areas on the Norwegian shelf were opened for renewable energy production at sea, and since then, authorities have been working to establish regulations in close cooperation with the industry and other users of the sea. On March 29, 2023, the first project areas for offshore wind at Utsira Nord and Sørlige Nordsjø II were announced.”
