1. Introduction and background

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Offshore wind energy is highlighted as crucial in the energy transition and for European security of energy supply (European Commission 2020). The European Commission’s Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy sets long-term targets to expand EU offshore wind capacity to 60 GW by 2030 and 300 GW by 2050. Member States have since expressed stronger ambitions for offshore renewable energy, giving cumulative EU offshore targets of 109–112 GW by 2030, 215–248 GW by 2040, and 281–354 GW by 2050. Recent analyses from Nordic Energy Research (2022, 2023) highlight the strong wind resource in the North and Baltic Seas and the scope for large-scale build-out when projects are well sited and designed to coexist with other sea users and biodiversity. Also highlighted is that Nordic cross-border cooperation on spatial planning, data and environmental monitoring can limit conflicts and improve outcomes.

Current offshore wind energy capacity is about 20 GW in the EU and 36 GW in wider Europe, with another 13 GW under construction, see Figure 1.1. Current floating offshore wind energy capacity is about 300 MW (in operation and under construction). Over time, Figure 1.2. shows that deployment of offshore wind capacity appears to be accelerating.

Source: 4C offshore wind farms database

Figure 1.1: Offshore wind energy capacity in Europe, current and under construction

Source: 4C offshore wind farms database

Figure 1.2: Cumulative offshore wind energy capacity in Europe, in operation and under construction, 1995–2027

There is considerable technical potential for increased offshore wind energy in Europe, as indicated for selected European countries in Figure 1.3. In total, the technical potential across the countries is estimated at about 9,000 GW for floating and 2,500 GW for fixed-bottom offshore wind energy. Note that the technical potential is not necessarily feasible, economically, environmentally or considering other marine activities.

Source: World Bank. Russia (13,700 GW), Albania (6 GW), Montenegro (1 GW) and Cyprus (0.004 GW) have been excluded. Not all countries are considered in the estimates by the World Bank, e.g., Åland, the Faroe Islands and Greenland.

Figure 1.3: Technical potential for offshore wind energy capacity in Europe, in GW

Offshore wind development has potential consequences for the natural environment, land-use and various anthropogenic activities, thus requiring a governmental licence.

In this report we use “licence” in a broad sense and interchangeably with “permit”, unless clearly specified.

The requirements and processes for obtaining licences vary between jurisdictions. In addition, there are cases of wind farm impact crossing over between jurisdictions, where international ocean treaties may have to be invoked.

Optimal offshore wind planning means minimising negative environmental impacts and potential conflicts with fisheries, marine traffic, national defences, aquaculture, tourism and others, and making thoroughly founded and transparent trade-offs between positive and negative impacts of the energy production and transmission. EU and national regulations, directives, guidelines and methodologies aim to facilitate optimal spatial planning, while climate and energy goals for the EU and the Nordic countries push for accelerated deployment.

This report maps Nordic countries’ current practices, identifies and assesses barriers for accelerating deployment of offshore wind, identifies opportunities through practices in other selected countries, and suggests a catalogue of recommendations for accelerating licensing processes in the Nordic countries. The aim is to support accelerated deployment of offshore wind energy in the Nordics, with focus on the licensing processes.

Chapter 2 gives an overview of relevant EU regulations and directives. Chapter 3 describes current practices related to offshore wind licensing in each of the Nordic countries and assesses key barriers to accelerated offshore wind deployment. Chapter 4 identifies measures or policies (opportunities) for accelerated offshore wind deployment, based particularly on practices in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium, in addition to a brief global review. Based on the review of and identified barriers in the Nordic countries and the identified opportunities in other countries, chapter 5 assesses the relevance of the opportunities for the Nordic countries. Lastly, chapter 6 presents our suggested catalogue of best practices in the Nordics.