Equinor is studying the potential for a new 1GW wind farm to power a series of oilfields in the North Sea.
“Trollvind” could provide much of the electricity to run installations in the Troll and Oseberg fields, around 40 miles west of Bergen.
Equinor, partnered with Petoro, TotalEnergies, Shell and ConocoPhillips, will buy as much energy as the wind farm can produce to make the North sea project possible, it said.
The Bergen area already serves several of these installations with power, and needs more input into its electricity grid.
It comes as Norway, like other countries around the world, grapple with escalating power prices.
Feasibility studies are underway and an investment decision is expected in 2023.
If approved, the project would start up in 2027, the partnership said.
© Supplied by Ole J?rgen BratlandEstimates from the partnership indicate that Trollvind could deliver power for less than 1 NOK (82 pence) per kilowatt hour and the partners are assessing a commercial arrangement whereby the windfarm sells power to the Troll and Oseberg installations and the Kollsnes plant onshore.
The Norwegian parliament made a decision two years ago to increase the emission reduction requirements from the Norwegian sector, from 40 to 50% by 2030.
Electrification of oil and gas installations is viewed as a key means of achieving that target.
© Supplied by EquinorEquinor CEO Anders Opedal said: “By producing oil and gas with low greenhouse gas emissions, we reinforce the competitiveness of the Norwegian shelf, maintain activity in the industry and safeguard future value creation.
“Trollvind is a concept where renewable energy works to facilitate several objectives; helping cut emissions through electrification, delivering power to an area where shortages have already created challenges for new industrial development, and Norway maintains its position as a leader in the industrialisation of floating offshore wind.
“A full-scale floating offshore wind farm like Trollvind could boost momentum towards realising the Norwegian authorities’ ambition to position Norway as an offshore wind nation, building on expertise from the oil and gas industry.”
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