Offshore wind
12 August 2021
Vårgrønn and Agder Energi have worked together for the initial development activity and are now announcing a broadening of the partnership as GIG, one of the world’s largest green infrastructure developers, enters the consortium. The consortium will bid for a site in the Norwegian Sørlige Nordsjø II area, comprising up to 3 GW of new offshore wind capacity.
Olav Hetland
CEO, Vårgrønn
The Sørlige Nordsjø II zone is one of two areas opened to licensing for offshore wind development by the Norwegian Government. With proximity to the European power market, shallow sea depths, good wind conditions, and nearby complementary industries, the Sørlige Nordsjø II area is particularly suitable for large-scale power production. Norway has the acreage, wind resources and supply chain needed to become an offshore wind superpower.
Vision 50 GW in 2050, a socio-economic analysis conducted by Thema Consulting on behalf of Agder Energi and Vårgrønn, shows how offshore wind in Norway can generate large amounts of renewable power to the European markets, creating an employment effect of up more than 50,000 FTEs and a market for goods and services exceeding NOK 100 billion annually in Norway towards 2050.
Edward Northam
Head of GIG Europe
Steffen Syvertsen
CEO, Agder Energi
Olav Hetland
CEO, Vårgrønn
Media enquiries
Vårgrønn is a Norwegian renewable energy developer formed in a joint venture between the global energy company Eni and the Norwegian energy entrepreneur and investor HitecVision. The company has plans to reach an installed capacity of 1 GW by 2030 – which indicates investments up to 2 billion NOK per year over the period in the renewable sector in the Nordics and the Baltics. Both Eni and HitecVision have a long history in the energy sector and are strongly committed to contributing to the energy transition. Eni owns a 20 percent stake in the first two phases of the 3.6 GW Dogger Bank Wind Farm situated off the British coast, the world’s largest offshore wind project. For more information: www.vargronn.no
Agder Energi, headquartered in Kristiansand, Norway, is a producer, manager, distributor, and retailer of electricity, serving Norwegian domestic customers and international businesses. With its 49 wholly owned and part owned hydropower stations, Agder Energi is one of Norway’s largest suppliers of renewable hydropower with an annual production of 8.1 TWh. In southern Norway, Agder Energi also owns and operates network and supplies 205.000 customer with electricity. Agder Energi has around 1,000 employees and an annual turnover of NOK 14 billion. With offices in Norway, Sweden, Finland, Germany, and Belgium, the group are also involved in developing sustainable, innovative energy solutions supporting a renewable society. The majority shareholders are the twenty-five municipalities in the Agder county, who have a combined ownership interest of 54.475 percent. Statkraft Holding AS owns the remaining 45.525 percent of the shares. For more information: www.ae.no/en