Sweden aims for 120 TWh from accelerated development of offshore wind farms
The Swedish government announced plans for a massive expansion of the country’s capacity for offshore wind power production with a focus on a capacity that almost corresponds to the country’s current annual electricity consumption. The government announced the new program and said it had formulated the country’s first comprehensive sea plan, but that it would look to update the plan when additional offshore areas are identified.
Sweden’s annual electricity consumption is approximately 140 terawatt hours (TWh) per year with only approximately 200 MW of production capacity from offshore wind. However, the government announced an offensive plan for a faster expansion of offshore wind power that will add 20–30 TWh of annual production in the first phase. Assuming that demand for electricity will accelerate as more industries switch to electricity from fossil fuels, the government instructs the Swedish Energy Agency to identify suitable areas together with other authorities to enable an additional 90 TWh of annual electricity production at sea.
“Today, the industry is screaming for offshore wind power. We are now accelerating the expansion of offshore wind power by pointing out a number of suitable areas far out to sea, says Annika Strandhäll, Sweden’s Minister of Climate and Environment. “At the same time, we give the Swedish Energy Agency the task of proposing even more areas.”
The new plan identifies three sea areas in the Gulf of Bothnia, the Baltic Sea and the North Sea as the first sites for the expanded sea capacity. They expect to move further out to sea and use floating wind turbines as part of the future project. Strandhäll emphasized that the plan will “facilitate decisions on larger and long-term projects.”
The sea plan also provides guidance on what is the best use of the sea and how different interests can coexist, in order to contribute to long-term sustainable development. They identify areas for electricity transmission, energy extraction, defense, culture, nature, recreation, sand extraction, shipping, commercial fishing and general use. The Swedish Maritime Administration helped to facilitate discussions with municipalities, municipalities and the business community that contributed to the development of the master plan.
For the second stage of the plan, the Government has commissioned the Swedish Energy Agency to report additional places at sea by March 2023. The Swedish Maritime Administration’s proposal must be submitted to the Government no later than December 2024.
Sweden joins neighboring countries that are also looking offshore for their future power needs. Both Germany and the Netherlands have recently announced plans to revive their offshore wind industry to increase capacity. Norway recently outlined plans for its first offshore wind farms to be located in the southern parts of the North Sea, as well as continued efforts focused on floating offshore wind farms to be located on the country’s west coast. In December 2021, the Finnish government approved plans for an auction model to be applied to the leasing of public water areas to support the expansion of offshore wind power.