Norway’s Green Ambitions could derail its European power exports?

Today, Norway is a global oil and gas exporter. What is less well known is that Norway is becoming an increasingly important supplier of electricity to Europe’s power markets. Statnett is the Norwegian state owned power utility that has become a significant player in the Scandinavian power market. Norway’s extensive hydro power resources have kept the lights on in Copenhagen, when the wind has failed to turn Denmark’s fleet of wind turbines.

Currently, 98 % of electricity generated in Norway comes from hydro power. Norway's Statnett has ambitions to utilise the country's immense hydro power potential as a battery to back up wind power capacity being built off the coasts of North Sea states including Britain, Holland and Germany.

Today, Statnett has ambitious plans to trade power further afield, outside the Nordic electricity market. It seeks to deliver power to new markets and overcome grid congestion by the construction of four direct interconnectors, to mainland Europe, with a total capacity of 4200MW. Such developments will also improve the country’s energy security at the times of low hydro power availability. Norway has ambitious plans to further develop its extensive hydro power and wind potential, through recent large increases in energy related R& d together with on-going efforts to develop carbon capture and storage technology.

In my view, Norway needs to build additional gas fuelled power stations, to improve energy security at times of low hydro power availability, however the country has ruled out such new gas plant until carbon capture and storage technology, becomes more competitive? As a result of this policy commitment to de-carbonisation of its economy and the current drought that has severely cut hydro power production, Statnett has initiated energy saving policies and has been importing power from neighbours, including from German coal power stations, which has resulted in more CO2 emissions than if Norway had built additional gas fuelled generating capacity.

Fact box:

Norwegian Installed Capacity by energy source, 2008

Norwegian Planned Capacity Additions 2009 - 2012

For further information see:

• http://www.statnett.no/en/
• https://www.entsoe.eu/resources/publications/former-associations/nordel/
• http://www.iea.org/w/bookshop/add.aspx?id=390
• Pennwell Global Power Review 2010