'Disappointing': Norway's subsidy for floating falls flat with offshore wind industry
Government will only provide support for one project, which industry body says will make fostering diverse supply chain difficult
Norway’s government will provide NKr35bn ($3.3bn) to support one 500MW floating offshore wind farm, a move branded “disappointing” by a local industry body.
This represents a responsible and balanced approach to offshore wind investment, he said.
Arvid Nesse, leader of industry body Norwegian Offshore Wind, said: “The supplier industry is, of course, disappointed, as we had expected two projects to receive support.
“It is important to ensure diversity in the supply chain, and this will now become more difficult,” says Nesse. "This is important for the suppliers to gain the predictability necessary to make the right investments for the future.”
Norway’s plans to be a trailblazer in floating wind have been repeatedly set back by wrangling over the government support that would be provided to the projects.
“The positive aspect now is that we are actually moving forward, and that Utsira Nord will be realised, despite only having one project in the first round,” said Nesse.
“At the same time, many countries globally are developing floating offshore wind, and analysis show 200GW under development. It is extremely important for the development of Norwegian suppliers that we have a domestic market and that we are early adopters”.
Norwegian Offshore Wind has previously said 12 different consortia are interested in the Ultsira Nord round.