Norway Offshore Wind Grid Connections[Draft]

Norway has adopted a developer-build-own model with radial connections for its first offshore wind licensing rounds. The government explicitly stated that no hybrid projects or interconnectors to foreign countries will be permitted in the initial phase — only radial connections to the Norwegian mainland. Developers are responsible for planning, constructing, and operating the grid connection infrastructure.

Norway’s only operational offshore wind installation follows a completely different model from the commercial grid-connected framework. Hywind Tampen is a floating wind farm that directly supplies oil and gas platforms, with no connection to the national grid.

The government has explicitly deferred hybrid interconnector projects to future licensing rounds. In February 2025, the Sørvest F bottom-fixed tender was scrapped entirely, with the government stating that “hybrid cables will not solve these challenges”.

The Offshore Energy Act was amended in December 2022 to change from an ‘open door’ licensing process to competition-based awards initiated by the state. Unlike Denmark’s open-door scheme (which was separately suspended), Norway never implemented an open-door approach for offshore wind — the amendment pre-emptively established competition as the default.

Norway’s offshore wind licensing follows a three-stage process combining elements from both onshore wind and petroleum regulation: area opening, area allocation, and licence grant.

Statnett SF has a government-assigned role for coordination of the offshore grid under the Offshore Energy Act. Responsibilities include recommending grid connection points, publishing the System Development Plan, coordinating developer-built radials with the onshore transmission system, and investigating hybrid interconnector concepts.

Statnett SF signed memorandums of understanding with five European TSOs in Q4 2023 to investigate potential hybrid interconnector grid solutions for offshore wind. All five MoUs were initiated in the context of the Sørvest F hybrid assessment.

Norway has extensive existing interconnector capacity (~5.2 GW), providing the strategic context for hybrid wind-interconnector concepts:

Norway is not an EU member but participates in the European Economic Area (EEA) via EFTA membership. This creates a distinct regulatory position: Norway is bound by internal market rules including state aid, but EU energy directives do not apply unless incorporated into the EEA Agreement.

Norway is a founding member of the North Seas Energy Cooperation (NSEC), established in 2016. Members: Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and the European Commission.

Norway’s offshore wind areas are included in the Northern Seas ONDP corridor planning. ENTSO-E published a shared infrastructure plan for the North Sea in January 2024. Hybrid interconnector concepts studied under Statnett’s TSO MoUs feed into ONDP planning.

The February 2025 cancellation of the Sørvest F bottom-fixed tender was a watershed moment for Norwegian offshore wind policy. The government shifted focus entirely to floating wind with radial connections, explicitly rejecting hybrid cables as a solution to cost challenges.

The government has expressed scepticism about “further exposing the Norwegian power system to the power challenges we have seen in Germany and other countries on the continent”. European-level regulations for hybrid interconnectors are “not in place” according to the Ministry, providing additional rationale for deferral.

With only ~88 MW operational and ~2.5 GW in development, Norway faces a significant scale-up challenge to reach 30 GW by 2040. Regular tendering rounds are planned, but grid capacity, supply chain readiness, and cost competitiveness remain key constraints.

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