World’s biggest offshore wind project wins environmental approval

A massive offshore wind farm of up to 5.5 gigawatts (GW) – the largest planned offshore wind project in the world to date – has been given environmental approval for development in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Sweden.

The huge project, which is being developed by Swedish renewables outfit OX2 and Ingka Investments, is now on track to begin construction in a few years, once final government approvals are locked in.

OX2 says the next step is for the County Administrative Board to propose to the government that the wind farm can be built according to the Act of Sweden’s exclusive economic zone. If this bid is successful, the company says construction could start in 2028, with first generation to follow on this side of 2030.

Developers seem confident of gaining final approvals, despite the scale of the project and its position “in an area of importance for the Swedish Armed Forces.” Interestingly, they say sensors on the turbines could asset with surveillance and control around the islands of Gotland and Öland.

“Aurora is a wind farm that can really make a real difference and act as a motor in the net zero transition in the southern parts of Sweden,” says Emelie Zakrisson, OX2’s head of development of offshore wind in Sweden.

“Export cables from the farm are planned to go to the mainland but also directly to Gotland. The large-scale production from Aurora would facilitate for more local electricity production to be developed as well as hydrogen production to help decarbonise industry and heavy transports,” Zakrisson says.

There is no word yet on a strike price for the energy generated by the Aurora project.

OX2 has an impressive list of renewable energy projects in the development pipeline, including 10 offshore wind projects listed as “under development” across Sweden and Finland.

Among them, the up to 400MW Galene wind farm was in January given the all-clear to go ahead off the west coast of Sweden.

“The Galene permit was huge for OX2 as a company, we are one of only two Swedish companies to have been granted a permit to build,” said Zakrisson at the time.