Norway approves plans for Equinor’s 88MW floating wind farm

Norway has approved plans for Equinor’s floating wind farm.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Industry in Norway has approved plans for development and operation of the 88MW Hywind Tampen wind farm.

The Snorre and Gullfaks platforms will be the first platforms in the world to receive power from a floating offshore wind farm.

Arne Sigve Nylund, Equinor’s Executive Vice President for Development & Production Norway, said: “Hywind Tampen is a pioneering project and a central contribution to reducing emissions from Gullfaks and Snorre, and I am pleased that both ESA and Norwegian authorities have approved the project.”

“We are experiencing very challenging times, and we are focusing on continuing our transition effort while attending to and developing the value on the Norwegian continental shelf and at the same time reducing the climate footprint from our operations.”

The wind farm will consist of 11 wind turbines based on the Hywind wind farm concept developed by Equinor, with the 8 MW turbines having a total capacity of 88 MW.

By reducing the use of gas turbines on the fields, the project will help reduce CO2 emissions by more than 200,000 tonnes per year, corresponding to annual emissions from 100,000 private cars.

Anders Opedal, Executive Vice President for Technology, Projects & Drilling, said: “On behalf of the partners, Equinor has awarded contracts totalling NOK 3.4 billion, subject to final project approval by Norwegian authorities. It is a plus that the oil and gas industry is competitive in renewables projects as well, and the contracts will lead to considerable spinoff effects in Norway. As the whole industry is currently experiencing much uncertainty, it is vital that we progress projects that spur technology development in the renewables segment and create spinoff effects on the Norwegian supplier industry,”

Operated from Equinor’s offices in Bergen, Hywind Tampen is scheduled for start-up at the end of 2022.