Finland publishes details of new offshore wind tendering plan aimed at boosting sector
Nordic nation has been working to improve legislative support for offshore wind energy in its exclusive economic zone
Finland has published a 17-point action plan to help boost its offshore wind sector and improve its “competitive position” against its Baltic Sea neighbours.
The plan was published by a working group set up by the country’s ministry of economic affairs and employment last year to explore ways to speed up development of the Nordic nation’s offshore wind sector.
“Finland has considerable potential for offshore wind energy, and project developers have become more interested in both [its] territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone (EEZ),” the ministry said announcing the news this week.
The World Bank has estimated that Finland has technical potential for 302GW of offshore wind – 170GW fixed bottom and 132GW floating.
But the ministry said that the rules for offshore wind power “have been found to be lacking,” especially concerning its EEZ, and it is revising them for that reason.
Finnish wind power developer Suomen Hyötytuuli has said legislative reform needs to ensure that offshore wind projects in the EEZ are treated equally to those in territorial waters when it comes to things like exploitation rights and permit processes.
The 17 measures proposed by the working group include: Setting long-term offshore wind objectives and improving the predictability of competitive tendering; establishing a coordination group for offshore wind; and lowering the real estate tax on offshore wind farms in territorial waters.
Other measures include streamlining permitting; developing procedures for connecting to the grid for large customers; and ensuring cooperation between ports to develop infrastructure.
The ministry also last year launched a legislative initiative concerning offshore wind power in the exclusive economic zone. It is also currently preparing legislative amendments concerning taxation of real estate and income in Finland’s EEZ.
Finland previously didn’t hold tenders for offshore wind leases, and instead allocated permits on a developer-led basis, as in neighbouring Sweden.
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