Finland’s offshore wind pipeline has almost reach 14GW, according to the Finnish Wind Power Association’s half-yearly report.
At present, 13 offshore wind projects with a total output of almost 13,500MW are planned.
More than 3200MW more offshore wind power is under development than in the spring.
Offshore wind power has so far not been economically viable, so projects have been developed slowly, said the association.
With the rapid decline in the costs of offshore wind power, market-based profitability will be realised during this decade, and interest in Finnish offshore wind power projects has grown significantly, the trade group said.
During the past year, several offshore wind power projects have been launched mainly within international waters under the control of Finland.
“It would be a good idea for the next Finnish government to clarify the legislation on domestic waters so that operators can reserve the area for the development of offshore wind power at an earlier stage than at present.
“Projects by different actors located in the same area mean double work in environmental impact assessment and seabed exploration.
“This is a waste of resources. The company should be allowed to reserve the area for itself even before the studies are launched,” said Anni Mikkonen, CEO of the Finnish Wind Power Association.
New offshore wind power projects are expected to be launched in regional waters, which are the Finnish state’s sea areas, in 2023 and 2024, when Metsähallitus puts projects out to tender for the areas it has selected.
“The principles for calculating the real estate tax on offshore wind power have already been presented to Parliament, but the final legislative amendment could not be completed during this government term.
“It is a critical factor in improving the economic profitability of offshore wind power,” Mikkonen added.
The combined output of the onshore wind power projects under development is now 18% higher than in the list of projects published in March 2022.
According to the statistics, nearly half of the planned wind power projects are still located in North Ostrobothnia, although the share of projects located in North Ostrobothnia has decreased slightly from March.
“However, it is not that there has been a significant loss of projects in North Ostrobothnia, but more projects have been launched elsewhere than in North Ostrobothnia,” Mikkonen said.
According to plans, a total of 340 power plants (1800MW) would be completed this year, a total of 250 power plants (1500MW) in 2023 and at least 140 in 2024.