For Utsira Nord offshore wind project areas, the Ministry assumes a radial alternating-current (AC/HVAC) grid connection to the Norwegian mainland, with the rights holder responsible for building, owning and operating the radial grid facilities to Statnett’s designated onshore connection point. For Utsira Nord project areas, Statnett has recommended/identified Karmøy and Gismarvik as relevant connection points. The Utsira Nord tender documentation also notes a possible increase in maximum permitted installed capacity per project area from 500 MW up to 750 MW, but detailed export cable counts, platform numbers, route lengths (beyond an approx. 40 km distance to land) and voltage levels (beyond an assumed 132 kV AC radial) are not defined in the cited sources.
- Capacity
- 750 MW
- Offshore platforms
- 0— Preferred/assessed solutions assume HVAC transport without offshore converter/station ("uten stasjonsanlegg til havs"); no offshore HVDC converter platforms assessed for the short-distance radial connection.
- Onshore substations
- 1–2— Connection point(s) in the onshore transmission network to be designated by Statnett. Statnett recommended connection to one of two planned transformer stations: Karmøy or Gismarvik. Statnett also assumes the developer will own and operate its own switchgear/control systems at the relevant transformer station.
- Export cables
- 1— Export system described at a high level as a developer-built radial grid facility from the offshore production facility to the onshore point designated by Statnett; no consented/proposed cable circuit count stated in the provided sources.
- Offshore route
- 40 km
- Water depth
- 185–280 m
Landfall options
Karmøy (west side / Håvik)Utsira (island)
Statnett proposes ilandføring into the Karmøy area (west side/Håvik) via a new subsea cable (c. 17–20 km). An alternative assessed is a new transformer station on Utsira with a combined subsea cable to a landfall on the west side of Karmøy and onward connection to the Karmøy station.
Grid connection options
Karmøy transformer station (new planned station)Gismarvik transformer station (new planned station)Spanne (mentioned as an option in earlier Statnett connection-point advice)
Statnett is responsible for designating the connection point in the transmission grid. For Utsira Nord project areas, Statnett recommended connection to Karmøy or Gismarvik (both planned new transformer stations). Earlier Statnett advice also mentioned Spanne as an alternative connection point for a distributed solution. Grid capacity reservation referenced in the Utsira Nord appendix is 500 MW for the state-aid winner; the tender framework also mentions potential increase in maximum installed capacity per project area to 750 MW.
Norway