Norway plans to auction the 3GW Sorlige Nordsjo 2 offshore wind zone in two 1500MW phases.
The first 1.5GW will be auctioned for projects that will connect directly to the Norwegian mainland, the government said.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said: “This is a solution that increases the power supply to southern Norway.
“The government’s goal is to facilitate that Norway has access to plenty of renewable and affordable power, so that this will also in the future be an advantage for Norwegian industry and contribute to value creation and employment throughout the country.”
The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy is in the process of developing an auction model to enable the first phase, and during the spring it will submit a bill to the Storting (Norwegian Parliament) with amendments to the Marine Energy Act to facilitate offshore wind development.
However, the government said it has yet to decide how the second 1.5GW will be linked to the grid.
The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) is to carry out analysis in collaboration with transmission system operator Statnett on a variety of connection approaches, including hybrid links to both Norway and other countries.
NVE and Statnett’s analysis will be completed in the autumn, the government said.
A consultation has also be launched for division of Sorlige Nordsjo 2 and the 1.5GW Utsira Nord offshore wind zone into call areas.
The division takes into account both environmental impacts and coexistence with other business interests, the government said.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy also plans to commission NVE to identify new areas for renewable energy production at sea based on input from a directorate group, and to prepare proposals for an impact assessment programme.
This work will take nine to 12 months, after which the impact assessment will have to be carried out before the new areas can be offered.
Pictured are (left to right) Minister of Petroleum and Energy Marte Mjos Persen, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, Minister of Finance Trygve Slagsvold Vedum and Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre.