Fred Olsen Renewables forges Norwegian offshore wind pact with power group

Fred Olsen Renewables (FOR) will link with Norwegian power group Hafslund Eco to bid to build offshore wind farms off Norway.

The two partners formed a 50/50 partnership that aims to develop wind and transmission projects when their home nation opens its first landmark tender in 2021.

FOR – already an established player in offshore and onshore renewables globally – said it and Hafslund Eco, which is owned by the City of Oslo, between them have “a unique position to contribute to the realisation of an offshore wind industry in Norway”.

The partnership will unite FOR’s project development know-how with its new partner’s track record as a power producer and grid operator in Norway, said a statement.

Norway’s parliament in June voted through a highly anticipated tender that opens up two vast areas of water (Utsira North and Southern North Sea) off its coast for the development with up to 4.5GW of floating and bottom-fixed wind arrays.

FOW and Hafslund Eco said they will submit a joint pre-application for the tender.

FOR's sister company, Fred Olsen Windcarrier, operates vessels that have installed some of the biggest offshore wind projects globally.

Oil & gas interest

The Norwegian tender has already attracted the attention of players in the country’s huge offshore oil & gas sector.

Another near-certain contender is Equinor, Norway’s majority state-owned offshore oil & gas giant which is already building floating wind off the Norwegian coast to decarbonise its fossil operations with the pioneering Hywind Tampen project.

Decarbonising offshore oil & gas is a major element of the impetus behind wind in Norway’s seas.

Although the Nordic nation already has a fully-renewable power system thanks to its vast hydro base, but sees wind power as key transition opportunity for its businesses and skilled workers as the fossil assets that have underpinned the nation’s vast wealth decline.