Proposes new tax on wind energy

– This is a moderate fee that will provide income to the host municipalities at the same time that the desire to invest not so much in the home hosts, win over Finance Minister Jean-Tore Sanner (h).

In the state budget proposal, the government proposes a tax on ground wind energy of 1 øre per kWh.

The fee is estimated to save 165 million kroner annually, and will come into effect at a time to be determined by the ministry – according to legal clarifications for the European Economic Area.

The tax comes after calls from the energy industry and the municipal sector that wind energy municipalities should be better compensated.

– It is good if a greater part of the income as community resources are used goes to the community, says Kjetil Høgseth Felde (Sp), Mayor of Fjaler Wind Energy.

A wise move by the government

– This was a smart move by the government. Here, the host municipalities can generate income that can in turn be used to mitigate the damage caused by wind farms, says Gunnar Selden (V), the next mayor of Stade, where there is plenty too.

It is time for us, as the host municipality, to allocate tax revenue for wind power, but hope for a facility on a par with hydroelectric power, says Ann-Christine Fordy (Labour), Mayor of Premanger.

The tax was announced in the revised national budget for 2021, but then another tax was announced the design.

At that time it was proposed to set a tax on the installed energy of the power plant. Now the government wants instead to put a tax on energy production.

“We hope this proposal will be put aside by the new government,” says Helge Eide, Kansas Director of Community, Welfare and Democracy.

KS, Energi Noreg, Norwea and the National Association of Wind Energy Municipalities (LVNK) will issue a joint statement in September regarding a tax on onshore wind energy. There they requested another facility for the fee.

It hurts investor confidence in the green transition

– It is positive that the government will compensate the municipalities that make the land available for wind energy, but we are disappointed that the investments that have already been made are not worth the shield. It hurts the investor confidence we need in the green transition, says Austin Schmidt Gallen, director of Norwea, which is promoting Norwegian renewable energy production.

He adds:

– It is also unfortunate that the fee can be adjusted every quarter, when one municipal sector asks for a fee that can be managed.

Knut Kropelin is the Managing Director of Energi Noreg, the employers’ organization for the renewable energy industry.

The drawback of this scheme is that it affects existing power stations, which in many cases have marginal profitability, he says.

“The natural resource tax could have been better,” John Evang, head of energy at Miljøstiftinga Zero, told NRK.

– The new government should look at this again, he says.

Should our natural resources be taxed on wind energy?

Niklas Kalvø Tessem is a daily leader in Kraftfylka, an organization that concerns the county municipalities.

It is positive that host municipalities receive direct compensation for encroachment on nature, but we are disappointed that no natural resource tax on wind energy has been proposed in addition to this, he says.

The government’s proposal does not include any compensation for the host province.

– It is unfortunate because in many cases the impact of wind energy is across municipalities, says Tessem.

County Mayor in Western Norway, John Askeland, is happy to introduce a fee that “benefits municipalities who say yes to wind turbines”.

Another aspect of these fees is that they improve the competitiveness of hydroelectric power plants. Current tax rules make it profitable for energy companies to invest in wind energy rather than start upgrading hydropower plants.

More about wind energy tax

Old gear, red

This medal has an upside-down side. Such a scheme might force poor municipalities to accept wind turbines for financial reasons

National Associations of Hydropower Municipalities (LVK)

– The proposal is an important achievement for wind energy municipalities, but as the only compensation for host municipalities that give up large natural values, fees should be higher. In the budget proposal, the government said no to a natural resource tax on wind power, as it did the hydropower sector.

The LNVK and the Natural Resources Municipalities will continue to work with the new government and Parliament to strengthen the wind energy tax structure. Based on the fact that an entirely municipal sector and a public energy industry have jointly submitted proposals to introduce a natural resource tax on wind energy production, we are asking the Støre Government and the European Parliament for approval.

Cecily Byland, Director of Energy at Samfunnsbedriftene

– We note that the government has listened to a homogeneous energy industry and is now introducing a new tax on energy production, not installed energy. However, I only listened with half a penny, as it must be considered that the government is proceeding fundamentally wrong with the arrangement of the tax. Thus, the government continues to ignore the obvious advice from the public picture of wind energy players. Public municipality-Norway and the joint industry have indicated the natural resource tax and the environmental tax as the right attachment to a new wind energy tax regime. This is because it must be compensated locally for the encroachment on nature that provides benefits to the entire energy nation. In general, this will provide reasonable compensation to the affected municipalities, while providing a predictable and known framework for actors.

Austin Schmidt Galen, Director of Norway

– It is positive that the government compensates the municipalities that provide land for wind energy, but we are disappointed that investments already made in a stable framework of the tax system are not protected. These are projects with partially limited tax capacity or limited tax capacity that the community as a whole wanted to support for example. ENOVA funds and certificates of electricity and consumption is faster. At the very least, it hurts investor confidence in the players we need in the green transition — and we should remember that in many cases, it’s publicly owned power plants that are getting a cold shower from taxes.

Helge Eide, Kansas District Director for Community, Welfare and Democracy

– It is not surprising that the government proposed this, in light of what was decided by the majority in the previous parliament, and what was sent for consultation earlier this year. Separately, it is positive that the tax includes both existing and new wind power plants.

But with a new majority in Parliament and the new government, we hope that this proposal will be set aside, in favor of a tax system agreed upon by the municipal sector and the energy industry, and recommended by Parliament at a joint deadline A question In September of this year:

The natural resource tax that is deducted from the corporate tax, which is not included in the inter-municipal income equation
Licensing fees that are included in the license terms that go to the municipalities where the intrusion is taking place