The government has decided not to grant permission to build and operate a wind farm at Stora Middelgrund outside Sweden’s territorial waters outside Halmstad on the west coast. According to the government, the applicant has not shown that the chosen location meets the requirement for a suitable location according to ch. 2. Section 6 of the Environmental Code.
– The government is working hard to increase the production of fossil-free electricity and has recently given permission to two offshore wind farms off the west coast. After a difficult balancing of interests, the government has today come to the conclusion that an establishment at Stora Middelgrund would risk damaging sensitive natural values in an unacceptable way. Even the risk of a negative impact on national interests in shipping has weighed heavily in the government’s assessment, says Climate and Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari.
Vattenfall published on its website that it “regrets the government’s decision to reject Vattenfall’s application to build the Stora Middelgrund wind farm. They will now analyze the decision more closely to see what consequences it brings.”
The wind farm at Stora Middelgrund was planned to be built on the Stora Middelgrund offshore bank in the southern Kattegatt in the Swedish economic zone, outside the territorial border. The completed wind farm was estimated to produce between 2.5 and 3 terawatt hours annually, corresponding to 1.5 percent of Sweden’s total electricity consumption.
The matter of a wind farm at Stora Middelgrund has been prepared by the County Administrative Board in Halland County, which together with several expert authorities and interest organizations have opposed permission being granted. The County Administrative Board has also denied a so-called Natura 2000 permit for the construction and operation of the wind farm.
Source: Regeringskansliet.se; Vattenfall
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