Five MPs have introduced a proposal for a national strategy to develop renewable energy, particularly land-based wind, in ways that use land more efficiently. The proposers argue that current licensing practices create high conflict levels, poor balancing between climate and nature concerns, and significant burdens on Sámi reindeer herders. They call for concrete measures including comprehensive national planning, improved mapping of degraded land, ecological compensation, removal of caps on small turbines, and stronger local support through neighbor compensation and public ownership.
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These are the proposals in the document, not decisions. See the votes for the outcome.
The Storting calls on the government to develop a comprehensive national plan, in consultation with county authorities, for nature-friendly and land-efficient renewable energy development. The plan shall identify which areas in Norway are suitable for new renewable energy projects, including wind power, large-scale solar power, energy storage, and necessary grid infrastructure; designate areas that should not be opened for development, including untouched natural areas, important reindeer herding regions, areas with significant natural or recreational value, and areas with distinctive landscape or cultural heritage value; ensure that new energy projects are located, wherever possible, in already built-up, industrialized, or heavily human-impacted areas, thereby minimizing intrusion into valuable nature; and allow flexible application of distance requirements for larger wind turbines, so that new energy projects can be sited in already developed, industrialized, or heavily impacted areas, while maintaining noise limits and other protections.
The Storting calls on the government to improve the Environment Agency's map of degraded land by distinguishing between built-up areas and transformable degraded areas.
The Storting calls on the government to assess how nature accounting for individual projects can form the basis for future requirements of nature neutrality in licenses and land-use plans, and to facilitate the use of ecological compensation in wind power and hydropower licenses.
The Storting calls on the government to remove the cap on the number of wind turbines under section 3-1 of the Energy Act Regulations for turbines in and near commercial buildings.
The Storting calls on the government to consider measures that would raise the threshold for submitting land-wind development plans, with the aim of reducing the burden on municipal administrations and ensuring that only sufficiently mature projects are advanced.
The Storting calls on the government to propose a requirement that municipalities must gather adequate information before rejecting a wind power application. The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate's authority for early case closure shall be maintained and expanded with stricter requirements regarding nature, environment, and Sámi rights.
The Storting calls on the government to study a neighbor compensation scheme in which up to two percent of a wind farm's revenue goes to neighboring households, following the model used in Sweden, Denmark, and other countries with similar arrangements.
The Storting calls on the government to propose a production fee of 0.7 øre per kWh on expected power generation from land-based wind projects, taking effect as soon as an investment decision is made.
The Storting calls on the government to propose amendments to wind power licensing law so that new wind farms face the same public ownership requirements as hydropower plants.