Wind energy, energy | A clear message to opponents of wind energy: – We cannot say no

Gardermoen (Netafsen): This week, large parts of the Norwegian energy industry are meeting at a major conference.

The background is reports that Norway needs a huge amount of new electricity production by 2030. At the same time, the industry has become afraid to invest because Unpredictable politics.

As Netavision has previously documented, very few municipalities associated with wind energy have a positive outlook on the presence of wind energy on the ground.

– Now it's just a matter of getting started and applying

Secretary of State Elizabeth Satter (AFP) at the Department of Energy has a very clear message for industry:

– We have imposed on the country a wind energy tax and a ground rent tax on hydropower. it is clear. Those waiting for me to bring out a “nice ace” here can take it simple: now it's just a matter of getting started and searching.

– I was in a meeting with Statkraft where I said I was looking forward to processing the lien, and then I was told that you can't say “looking forward,” because that would mean foreclosure. “But inside I'm happy to see the license application, and I hope to see more of them in the future,” Satter says.

I can't say no to onshore wind energy

They are clear that many of these applications will be onshore wind energy.

“If you want to have predictable energy prices in the future, we are completely dependent on new production,” she said.

Onshore wind energy is not conflict-free, and it never will be. But onshore wind is today's most profitable source of new energy. He's the one with the most potential: “We can't say no,” Sather said.

It will make wind energy popular

The Secretary of State therefore challenged the industry to be much better at creating enthusiasm for wind energy projects:

– I am in the right place when I say that the industry is the expert in building local acceptance. As for hydropower, they have managed to make “hydroelectric municipality” synonymous with something that other neighboring municipalities envy: there is a boom in hydroelectric municipality.

We also have to get there with municipalities for wind energy, she said, noting that municipalities now receive an production tax of 2.3 eur per kilowatt-hour – in addition to the property tax.

She's particularly concerned that people should talk more politely about wind energy:

– Many upcoming wind energy projects are linked to the regional industry. I think this is very wise. In cooperation with LO, the government established energy cooperation, a trilateral cooperation. One of its goals, and its most important gains so far, is to have a broader discussion about energy.

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– It shouldn't be just the mayor or local energy company standing up and cheering for wind energy locally. “We rely on everyone who needs energy in the municipality to come up with new energy projects – whether it's the local industry or the baker on the corner,” she said.

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It was necessary to make the process slower

At the same time as the government expressed its desire to develop more energy, it was disturbed by the industry: the government took measures such as It gives municipalities authority over wind energy matters. This means that the processes have It took longer.

The Minister of State said it was necessary to give municipalities greater control than in the past, because some municipalities were quite on the defensive even after a license was granted.

-I wish it wasn't necessary, but I'm still convinced that it was. Municipal opposition may seem like a stone in a shoe, she said, but history shows that if there is opposition, there will be a halt to prosperity.

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She pointed out that some municipalities sat back and were able to train operations after granting the concession, and that the last time she stood on the same platform there was a complete halt in preparing wind energy concessions because the level of conflict had become too high.

– Before I came here, I was interviewed at Echo and asked whether some of the solutions included in the Planning and Building Code would make conflicts disappear. The conflict never goes away when we talk about energy development. It has been there since the dawn of time and it will continue to be there. The question is how to deal with it in the best possible way.

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-You are sitting with a lot of faces. You have the history and experience of how to achieve good local acceptance. “This is experience that I hope we can continue to build on, whether as we expand hydropower further, or invest more in more onshore wind – not least solar and offshore wind,” she concluded.