– Eastern Norway needs to increase power supply. So that we have enough power for companies, households and the green shift. We cannot leave this entire job to the Westerners. We have to do something ourselves, says head of NHO in Innlandet, Jon Kristiansen. But not everyone agrees. – I think that the developers have probably miscalculated when they shift their focus to the east of the country. They must have thought that in pig-ridden areas with a reasonably dispersed population, there would be little resistance. And that’s how you can make mistakes. That’s what John Fiskvik, head of Motvind Norge, says. Because while the wind turbines are close together in Western Norway, the situation is completely different in Eastern Norway. Here, in the area where by far the most people live in Norway, only four wind power plants have been built. Wind power development in Norway The wind power plants were first mainly built in Western Norway and in the north where there was the most wind. Many were given a license to build by NVE, without the municipalities being consulted and involved to such a large extent. An increase in the profitability of wind power plants also meant that many more were built in a shorter time than the directorate had anticipated. Especially in the period 2017-2021. At the same time, the resistance to wind power grew stronger and stronger. Gradually, new technology with higher and more efficient wind turbines made it possible to build profitably in Eastern Norway as well. But by then the opposition to wind power in Norway had become so strong that NVE finally introduced a license break. The municipalities have now gained more power in wind power matters. Over 60 wind power plants have been built along the coast from Lindesnes and northwards. In Eastern Norway, only four have been developed. The dots in blue show projects that are in an early phase, but which can be realised. There has been no shortage of attempts to build wind power projects in recent years in Eastern Norway either. But the resistance has been too great for them to be realised. Engerdal Wind Power Plant in Østerdalen is one of the proposals that never came to fruition. It was voted down last autumn. WANT TO BUILD ON TOTEN: The wind power company Zephyr wants to build a large wind power plant with up to 70 turbines on the hills between Toten, Land and Hadeland. Illustration: Zephyr AS Has mapped wind turbine projects news has made an overview of the projects we know are under development in Eastern Norway. Common to those we have included on the list is that they have been publicly known via the media or other channels. The list is not exhaustive, as there may be projects underway that are not known to the general public. Wind power projects in eastern Vågå: Fred Olsen Renewables wants to set up up to 47 wind turbines and solar cell systems in an area surrounded by five national parks in Vågå in the interior. The project has met with strong local opposition, but has not yet been considered by the municipality. Hadeland: Two projects Development company Zephyr wants to build up to 70 wind turbines on the hills between Toten, Land and Hadeland in the interior. The project has met with strong local opposition, but has not yet been considered by the municipality. Eidsiva Hafslund Vind wants to develop up to eight wind turbines on Lauvhøgda in Vestre Toten municipality. The project has not yet been considered by the municipality. Solør: Hafslund/Eidsiva wind is working on a project in the Solør region in Grue municipality in Innlandet. It is not yet known how many wind turbines they want to build here and the project has not been considered by the municipality. Aremark: Two projects Zephyr wants to build 12 wind turbines in Aremark near Bikjula, towards the border with Sweden in Østfold. The project has not yet been considered by the municipality. Hafslund/Eidsiva Vind is also working on a wind power project at Blankefjell/Ankerfjella in Aremark. It is not known how many wind turbines they want to build. The project has not yet been considered by the municipality. Sarpsborg: Zephyr wants to develop 13 wind turbines in Skjebergmarka in Sarpsborg municipality in Østfold. The project has not been considered by the municipality. Porsgrunn: Norsk wind wants to build seven wind turbines a stone’s throw from E18 in Porsgrunn. The project is currently postponed as there is a political agreement in Porsgrunn not to develop wind power in the current municipal four-year period. Stange: Romedal- and Stange Allmenning is considering allowing Statkraft to investigate wind power from their forest areas. Advice: Two wind power companies are considering projects in Østfold municipality. In addition, Indre Østfold municipality said no to a project with 31 wind turbines in the Hobøl/Spydeberg area this week. Zephyr is the developer for that project. Several wind power projects were also rejected by the municipality of Engerdal in Innlandet last year. In the municipality of Siljan in Telemark, as well as Drangedal and Nome in Telemark, plans have also been presented in the last couple of years that have met with great opposition in 2023, but which have recently received little attention. The same has happened in the municipalities of Nes and Aurskog-Høland in Akershus. These plans have been rejected by the municipalities. – Many municipalities, residents and landowners have looked back at the processes that have taken place, and the criticism that has taken place, and think that we should not try that again. There is a history here that makes it dangerous to touch, dangerous to record, says Mikaela Vasstrøm. She is an associate professor at the Department of Global Development and Community Planning at the University of Agder. Vasstrøm has been researching resistance to wind power for a number of years. WIND POWER RESEARCHER: Mikaela Vasstrøm is associate professor at the University of Agder. Photo: University of Agder Do not believe in much development in the next 10 years As news’s overview shows, there are many projects that have been proposed and are under development. But Mikaela Vasstrøm believes that it will take some time before wind power plants are realized in Eastern Norway in the next few years. The new energy situation, with the war in Ukraine, higher electricity prices and increased understanding of more power needs in Norway means that attitudes towards wind power have changed somewhat. From 2018 to 2021, support for wind power was halved. In the last couple of years, it has risen somewhat again, according to Cicero’s climate barometer. And Jon Kristiansen in NHO points out that with the reported power demand, Eastern Norway as a whole will have a power deficit of over 10 terawatts as early as 2030. Nevertheless, the initiatives from wind power developers and power companies are not particularly successful. Vasstrøm believes that the municipalities themselves must take the lead if this is to be successful. – Before a developer comes, the municipality should discuss and perhaps create a planning process on what renewable energy should be in their municipality. Do they want to produce renewable energy? For whom? For what? And where? says Vasstrøm. She believes the municipalities should also consider more local ownership and whether the wind power plants can be linked to new or upcoming industries. So that they help drive the municipal economy and create new jobs. – But without wind power having a connection with the local economy and jobs, in addition to taxation, I don’t think we will be able to see very large development in 10 years’ time, she says. Jon Kristiansen in NHO also appeals to the municipalities and asks them to see what their contribution to developing renewable power can be. He believes that interference with nature must be done as gently as possible, but that there must be opportunities to develop wind power in Eastern Norway. – We have a high population density, a lot of cultural landscape and many land areas that already have existing interventions and infrastructure. Then it should be possible for us to find areas that are suitable for wind power production without destroying more untouched nature. WIND POWER IN THE EAST LAND: The wind power plant in Nord-Odal has 34 turbines. Photo: NTB Don’t want wind power at all Motvind Norge believes that wind power development is a waste of both environmental and energy policy regardless of where it is placed. OPPONENTS: John Fiskvik is head of Motvind Norge. Photo: NTB When proposals for wind development come up in a new location, the organization is quick to mobilize. They quickly establish action groups which are followed up from a central point of view, preferably in collaboration with nature conservation and environmental organisations. – We have members and supervisors and women in all the municipalities in Norway. And we follow closely everywhere to expose what we define as undemocratic secrecy. Fiskvik in Motvind Norge has nothing left for the idea that the municipalities should take a more active role in the development of wind power itself. – We believe that it is absolutely not a good idea. And I sincerely feel sorry for those municipalities which, for financial reasons, see themselves having to consider wind power in the short term and thus destroy priceless natural and nearby areas. Motvind Norge’s alternative Motvind Norge believes that instead of developing wind power, a number of other measures can be taken to secure the power supply in Norway, described in the report “Energy on nature’s terms. They believe that Norway can extract 40 Twh by 2050 through energy efficiency measures. Upgrade and modernize hydropower that will be able to produce up to 15 Twh without new natural interventions. In addition, there will be solar cells on the roof, district heating and geothermal energy. Motvind Norge also points out that last year Norway exported 18 billion Twh and that through the Montreal Agreement, Norway has committed itself to taking care of 30 percent of representative Norwegian nature. Sees great potential for wind power in Eastern Norway Last summer, Eidsiva Energi and Hafslund established a collaboration they call Eidsiva Hafslund Vind. They see great potential for wind power in south-east Norway. And believes that technological development now means that the eastern part of Norway is more relevant for wind power than it has been in the past. – The turbines can be built higher and they catch more wind, which means that forest areas and areas in the east are significantly more relevant and have a higher potential than before. This is what Torstein Sole-Gärtner, head of Eidsiva Vekst, says. WANT TO BUILD OUT: Director of Innovation at Eidsiva, Torstein Sole-Gärtner. Photo: Reidar Gregersen The wind power company has gone through several hundred locations in south-east Norway and has ended up with a handful of projects they are working on. Most of the projects are in an early phase, but two of the projects are included in news’s overview. Eidsiva points out that Eastern Norway has already built up many forest roadways, which means that interventions can be smaller than if completely untouched areas were used. – So it is that all forms of renewable energy production have negative consequences. It is the use of land and nature interventions, and it is about weighing the advantages against the disadvantages and seeing if this is right for society, says Sole-Gärtner. He emphasizes that they will present the projects in a proper way when they are ready for it and facilitate an open, trusting and fact-based debate. He has this to say about Mikaela Vasstrøm’s suggestion that the municipalities themselves should take more of the lead: – We think it is good that the municipalities take an active role in community planning and renewable power production as a natural part of it. We would like to contribute with facts and training in the energy system and power situation to enable the municipalities to take on this role, he says. What do you think about wind power in Eastern Norway? Should it be developed more? No, I don’t want that. It is more important to preserve nature. Yes, we should. We need renewable electricity for the green shift. I have not made up my mind about this. Show result
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The projects are in the queue, but almost no one gets to build wind power plants in Eastern Norway – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
