We are facing a major energy transition in which offshore wind looks set to play a key role. Norway is well-positioned to become an attractive market for offshore wind, and we may see rapid developments after the Utsira North and Southern North Sea II areas were opened for license applications in January 2021.
The regulations for offshore wind are new and still under development, however these are largely based on petroleum laws and the Energy Act, which allows us to draw upon our unique experience from the petroleum sector, shipping, renewable energy, climate and the environment. Our lawyers have extensive experience with the applicable regulatory framework, structuring of major construction and development projects and associated contracts for both the petroleum industry and onshore energy production. We also have experience from floating offshore wind projects.
The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway has been assigned primary responsibility for drawing up new HSE regulations for offshore wind, and has stated that the regulations will have functional requirements and a risk-based approach that are equivalent to what currently apply for the petroleum sector. Our lawyers have extensive experience with the HSE regulations for the petroleum sector, and one of our lawyers is also the author of the HSE chapters in the commentary edition of the Petroleum Act.
Our services include:
- Licenses and regulatory advice
- Company establishment
- Negotiations and preparation of contracts
- Project consulting
- Protection of technology and intellectual property rights
- Financing
- Dispute resolution
