Sintef researcher Atle Harby believes that both Norway and Europe can benefit from expanding the power cable network significantly. Teknisk Ukeblad/NTB write that Sintef researchers have calculated the consequences of installing new cables with a capacity of 12.6 GW between Norway and several European countries, as well as doubling the capacity to Sweden. This corresponds to nine new international cables. The researchers in the HydroConnect project have then added more power to Norwegian power plants. They think everyone will benefit from a better cable network. Prices in Norway will still be lower than in Europe despite cable development, Harby believes. Atle Harby is a senior researcher at Sintef. Photo: Arnstein Staverløkk But the proposal faces strong opposition among several of the energy politicians in the Storting, whom news has spoken to. Energy policy spokesperson in Raudt, Sofie Marhaug, calls the proposal “completely wrong” – Harby has a very theoretical relationship with Norwegian energy policy. He simply does not consider people’s bills, the competitiveness of business or the environmental consequences of this airy and bad proposal. And he doesn’t care about political opportunities either. It is completely unrealistic to get a majority to build nine new international cables. Energy policy spokesperson in Raudt, Sofie Marhaug, believes the proposal is “completely failed”. Photo: SIMON S. BRANDSETH / news Part of the election campaign In the final phase of the election campaign it emerged that power prices were almost 50 times higher in the south than in the rest of the country. The FRP said outright that they had made a mistake in energy policy and that it was wrong to say yes to the EU’s third energy market package, which led to private companies being able to build more overseas cables. Group leader Terje Halleland (Frp) hardly believes what he reads from the researcher. – You must be reasonably detached in the political debate if you believe that more foreign cables are a solution to challenges in the power market. Group leader Terje Halleland in the energy committee (Frp) calls the proposal decoupled. Photo: Håkon Mannsåker He points out that there is much that can be solved with the development of a new power grid and new power generation, but that it is a long way off in time to get it in place. – Now we have large price differences internally in Norway, which is due to the foreign cables. Then the solution is not to build more international cables. The Center Party also expresses great skepticism about the proposal and writes that the party has “no ambitions for Norway to be Europe’s battery”. – The Center Party has been clear that we want to have more control over our power resources and my first thought is that our hydropower is unique and that it should primarily contribute to reasonable prices for Norwegian industry and business. That is where the values are created, not through power exports, says member of the energy and environment committee, Gro-Anita Mykjåland. Gro-Anita Mykjåland in the Center Party is skeptical of the proposal to build out more cables. Photo: Svein Sundsdal / news Even MDG thinks the proposal for nine cables is “violent” and “not realistic to achieve in the first place”. – Politically, it is difficult to imagine that we will build nine cables in the short term, says energy policy spokesperson Einar Wilhelmsen. The party is positive about more cables, but believes it is crucial that consumers are better protected than today. – When we go ahead with building more cables, we must have better mechanisms to protect consumers. It cannot be the case that the electricity price varies by almost a krone from one day to the next. Einar Wilhelmsen is energy policy spokesperson in MDG. Photo: Olav Juven – Large and unused resource Harby believes that clean Norwegian power meets needs in Europe, while Norwegian storage can contribute to the storage of surplus power when there is a lot of wind and sun in Europe. He says the researchers have included in their estimates that Norwegian power production is developed in line with plans and targets. – Something that creates a surplus situation, we are the ones who have the electricity, and we are the ones who have the magazines, says Harby to Tekniske Ukeblad. Øyvind Stakkeland, strategic advisor for group development at Å Energi, heads the steering group at Hydro Connect. He points out that Norway has a large and untapped resource in offshore wind, but that there is a need for infrastructure to transport the power and exchange power between regions. – I hope Norwegian politicians will eventually see that a future emission-free European power system with a North Sea grid, with many new cables, is also in Norway’s interest, says Stakkeland. Sintef researchers believe that prices in Norway will still be lower than in the rest of Europe despite cable development. Photo: Stian Lysberg Solum / Stian Lysberg Solum
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– Reasonable disconnection – news Vestland
