Through an auction system, the state is to take over some of the Wild West that characterizes Swedish offshore wind power. An auction procedure applies in all other European countries.
It is expected to create simpler, clearer rules where wind farm builders will avoid getting late noes when they have already invested large sums of money.
Not profitable enough
However, the proposal will not lead to more offshore wind power in Sweden, notes investigator Magnus Hermansson. There is a lack of commercial prerequisites for making wind power profitable along the entire Swedish coast, according to a report commissioned by the investigators. Therefore, probably nothing will be built without the state providing some form of support.
Our proposal does not in itself lead to more wind power being built, says Hermansson.
A look at Europe shows that only 0.5 percent of all offshore wind farms built in the last ten years have been built on market terms, i.e., without the state providing a bag of money.
However, it is outside the investigator's mandate to propose any support.
Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari (L) did not want to answer at the press conference whether the government is willing to provide funding.
This is not enough, we know, we need to do more. We need to change our system, she says.
The proposal in brief
The investigation was set up over a year ago with the aim of getting more wind turbines in the sea - power that is often pointed out as the greatest potential for more Swedish electricity production. The electricity demand is expected to double over the next 20 years.
This is what the investigator's proposal looks like in brief:
1. A state auction system that creates better and clearer rules.
2. Transitional rules for handling existing projects.
With an auction system, which is proposed to come into force on July 1, 2026, the winning wind farm company gets exclusive rights. The interests of the Defense, municipalities, or others are already settled. This largely solves the planning problem and the risk of ultimately getting a no.
Takes a long time
New wind farms with the proposed auction procedure will not be built until the end of the 2030s, estimates the investigator.
The problem is how all projects that have already started will be handled. The investigation proposes that these will largely be tested in parallel according to the current rules. Otherwise, a vacuum will arise where nothing will be built for many years.
