NVE: Første vindkraft får ja på ni år

Norsk Vind og Eviny will construct the first wind farm in Norway in nearly a decade, following approval by Norges vassdrags- og energidirektorat (NVE). The project, known as Moldalsknuten, will consist of eight turbines soaring up to 200 meters high, with a capacity of 40 megawatts. This will generate 92.8 gigawatt-hours annually, accounting for less than 0.1 terawatt-hours, or a small fraction of Norway's total wind power production of around 15 TWh per year.

The project has undergone public hearings and town hall meetings, with local Sokndal municipality reviewing the matter multiple times. Moldalsknuten wind farm will be situated in an area already impacted by other wind farms and mining operations, with minimal residential development nearby. The NVE recommends that the overall impacts are acceptable but will still impose several requirements to mitigate effects on birds and coastal noise.

A comprehensive environmental impact assessment of seabirds before and after construction will be conducted. The land use regulation for the wind farm was approved on October 19th, and NVE has expedited the process, granting the concession only two days after the municipality completed its review. The project includes a control building, a 1-kilometer power line, and a new access road from the existing road to Tellenes wind farm.

While there are several other wind energy projects currently under review, many are controversial. NVE previously rejected a similar project in Finnmark due to environmental concerns, though the Energy Ministry recently decided to proceed with the approval process.