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OSLO, June 14 (Reuters) - British oil major BP will
join Norway's Statkraft and Aker Offshore Wind
<AOW-ME.OL> to bid for permits to build offshore wind power
projects off Norway, the companies said on Monday.
The consortium in which each partner will have a 33.3% stake
plans to bid for offshore wind power projects in the Soerlige
Nordsjoe II licensing area in the southern part of the North
Sea, one of the two areas opened in Norway.
The area is suitable for bottom-fixed wind power platform
and sits on a maritime border with Denmark, providing a
potential to export electricity to neighbouring markets.
The consortium also plans to explore opportunities to
provide renewable power to electrify offshore oil and gas
facilities, they added.
"Our partnership with Aker and BP will create significant
value and contribute towards Europe's energy transition,"
Statkraft Chief Executive Christian Rynning-Toennesen said in a
statement.
Statkraft has previously been involved in developing
offshore wind parks off Britain, but exited the business several
years ago citing high costs.
Offshore wind has started to look more economically feasible
with costs coming down quicker than expected and as the EU
introduces more ambitious targets for cutting carbon dioxide
emissions, he added.
Aker Offshore Wind is controlled by Norway's Aker ASA
, a group which also controls Norwegian independent oil
firm Aker BP, where BP has a 30% stake.
Norway's government said last week offshore wind projects in
the Soerlige Nordsjoe II area will have to be developed without
subsidies.
The plans have attracted a lot of interest from Norwegian
and foreign energy firms, including Equinor and Danish
Orsted.
(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis, editing by Terje Solsvik)
