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Norway awards first offshore wind farm license

A consortium formed by Belgium's Parkwind and Ikea's parent company has won the tender to build Norway's first offshore wind farm, Norway's government said Wednesday.

Published: 20 March 2024 13:41 CET

Pictured is an AFP photo of a windfarm off the coast of Portugal.

Norway has awarded licenses for offshore wind. File photograph: This photograph shows wind turbines at the Wind Float Atlantic floating offshore wind farm. (Photo by MIGUEL RIOPA / AFP)

Following two days of bidding, the joint venture Ventyr emerged as the winner to develop the planned 1,500 MW wind power farm in the Sorlige Nordsjo II field in the North Sea.

The completed auction is welcome news for Oslo, as doubts have surfaced about the willingness of industry players to commit to the project at a time when offshore wind projects suffer from high construction costs and interest rates.

The Sorlige Nordsjo II field is located far from the mainland in a deep-water area near the border to Danish waters.

“The first offshore wind auction has been a success”, Norway’s Minister of Energy Terje Aasland told a press conference.

Ventyr brings together Parkwind, owned by Japan’s Jera, and the investment arm of Ingka Group, the holding company controlling most of Ikea’s stores.

“I hope they will start as soon as possible,” Aasland said. Norway — Western Europe’s biggest producer of oil and gas — has set a target of awarding offshore wind power licenses equivalent to 30,000 MW by 2040.

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Norway ranked the best county in the world for press freedom

The new World Press Freedom Index, published on Friday by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), once again singled out Norway as the global champion of press freedom.

Norway has scored high on virtually all indicators, including the political, economic, legislative, social, and security ones. Its total final score was 91.89 – a drop from 95.18 in 2023 but still high enough for Norway to remain in first place.

Norway has also seen a fall in its political indicator score, which emerged as a common theme in this year’s index.

Ireland (8th), where politicians have subjected media outlets to judicial intimidation, has ceded its leading position in the European Union to Denmark (2nd), followed by Sweden (3rd).

The RSF further commented on the countries that performed the worst in this year’s index: “The three Asian countries at the bottom of last year’s Index – Vietnam, China and North Korea – have ceded their positions to three countries whose political scores have plummeted: Afghanistan, which has persecuted journalists incessantly since the Taliban returned to power; Syria; and Eritrea, which is now last in both the political and overall rankings.

“The last two countries have become lawless zones for the media, with a record number of journalists detained, missing or held hostage.”

A robust legal framework and vibrant media landscape

Reporters Without Borders pointed out that Norway’s robust legal framework and vibrant media landscape have contributed to its continued success in promoting press freedom.

The organisation further said that the Norwegian media market boasts diverse outlets, including the dominant public service broadcaster NRK and various private publishing companies, all of which operate with extensive editorial independence.

Despite the presence of a strong public broadcaster, digital platforms like the online version of the VG newspaper have gained prominence, reflecting a dynamic and evolving media environment.

“The Norwegian media operate in a favourable political environment. By and large, Norwegian politicians refrain from labelling unfavourable coverage as ‘fake news’ and from disparaging its authors.

“Parliamentarians and government ministers avoid approaching the editorial boards of publications subsidised by public bodies”, the RSF said.

The full findings of the 2024 World Press Freedom Index can be found on the RSF website.

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