A consortium of Mainstream Renewable Power, Ocean Winds and Statkraft has signed a memorandum of understanding with Norwegian engineer Aker Solutions to develop floating offshore wind off Norway's west coast.
The Norwegian government plans to auction three sites in Utsira Nord, a licence area located off the coast of Haugesund in western Norway, that could each support about 500MW of offshore wind capacity.
A tender is provisionally scheduled for the end of the first quarter of 2023, for which qualitative criteria will be used. It would also feature two sites in the Sørlige Nordjsø II area each capable of supporting 1.5GW.
Together, Aker Horizons-owned Mainstream Renewable Power, Ocean Winds, Statkraft and Aker Solutions want to develop technologies and initiatives in order to lower costs and ultimately strengthen Norway’s competitiveness in floating wind, as well as contribute to the government’s 2050 net-zero target.
