Jørn A. Uggerud

Municipally owned ports in Norway have traditionally been organised either as inter-municipal companies (IKS) or as municipal enterprises. Both structures provide clear public ownership. The IKS model facilitates cross-municipal cooperation and offers predictable conditions for operations and financing. For many ports, these structures continue to work well. In recent years, however, a growing number of owner municipalities have either converted or are considering converting their port company to a private limited company (AS). Several factors are driving this shift.

AS Batteriretur has finalized the sale of its majority stake in its subsidiary, Høyenergi AS, to Sortbat and its parent company, Bebat. This strategic acquisition strengthens Belgium's and Norway's leadership in the sustainable management of high-energy batteries, a critical component of the growing battery recycling and energy storage industries.

Implementing carbon capture and storage involves high costs and government incentives are therefore a necessary measure for scaling the technology.

National and international regulations are crucial for the effective implementation of carbon capture and storage as a measure to achieve climate targets. Below, we outline the key points you should know about the Norwegian and European regulatory frameworks.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is emerging as a critical tool in addressing climate challenges. Norway, in particular, has the potential to position itself as a global leader in this field. This article explores what CCS entails and why it is essential for combating climate change.

For many years, we have assisted Space Norway in establishing broadband in the Arctic. On August 12, 2024, two Norwegian satellites were launched from California to orbit around the Arctic. This marks a significant and decisive step in the program.

Clean hydrogen is crucial to the future energy system in the EU, and the time is right for develop-ment of the green industry essential to address the climate crisis.

As a result of exciting and dynamic times within the energy industry, Chambers and Partners have highlighted the growth by publishing a new global practice guide, "Alternative Energy and Power 2023".

Nearly three years have passed since the areas Utsira Nord and Southern North Sea II were designated for offshore wind power production. During a press conference on March 29, 2023, the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy announced a competition for project areas for offshore wind in both regions. This marks the first time applications for offshore wind on the Norwegian continental shelf are open. The plan is to allocate the project areas for both Southern North Sea II and Utsira Nord by the end of 2023.

On June 14, 2022, a public committee that assessed the development of the power grid presented the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy their Official Report “Grid on time” – on the development of the power grid (NOU 2022: 6). The proposed measures could collectively contribute to a significant boost to the grid development in Norway, by reducing the overall lead time for grid facilities, better utilization of the network, and improve the connection process.

The Norwegian government presented its large-scale plan for the development of offshore wind in Norway.

The processing of license applications for wind power onshore in Norway has been at a standstill since April 2019. On Friday April 8th the Norwegian government published a white paper and a letter to The Norwegian Water and Energy Directorate (NVE) stating that they are re-opening the process of license applications for onshore wind power in cases where this is requested by the host municipalities.

When the Solberg government opened areas in the North Sea for offshore wind, it set a maximum installed capacity at 1,500 MW for Utsira Nord and 3,000 MW for Southern North Sea II.

The Norwegian government issued an update related to its offshore wind strategy on February 9th, 2022. The strategy aims to support the further development of offshore wind in Norway, whilst the controversial hybrid cables are postponed.

On Friday, June 11, the Minister of Petroleum and Energy Tina Bru presented Norway’s strategy to maintain its position as an energy nation. A key component of this strategy is offshore wind. The government believes that the interest in Norwegian offshore wind is now so significant that they can conduct an auction for the rights to develop offshore wind in the North Sea. We have taken a closer look at what this development involves.

The Norwegian Government on 11 June 2021 published a White Paper «Putting Energy to Work – Long Term Value Creation from Norwegian energy resources”.

Today, the government presented the parliamentary report "Energy for Work – Long-term Value Creation from Norwegian Energy Resources."

The Port of Bergen is one step closer to a new cargo port.

Jørn A. Uggerud named as leader of the Norwegian Offshore Wind Cluster Contracts group.

On Tuesday, June 30, the Government established changes in the NEM Regulation that clarify the rules on corporate and functional separation between power grid activities and other activities. The basis for the rule change was a proposal by the Reiten Committee in 2014, in which Hjort partner Kristin Bjella was one of three committee members who participated in the work.

On Friday, June 12 2020, by royal decree, the areas "Utsira Nord" and "Sørlige Nordsjø II" were opened for offshore renewables, including offshore wind power. This means it will be possible to submit license applications for offshore wind power projects. At the same time the King also adopted a regulation which supplements the Ocean Energy Act and clarifies the licensing process.

In light of the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, authorities across the world are increasingly implementing comprehensive measures in order to reduce further spread. In Norway, authorities have temporary implemented automatic quarantine for every person coming to Norway from a different country. While these measures can have a big impact on the freight transport industry, there are some key exceptions concerning transit of goods and passengers to be aware of.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson seems determined to lead Britain out of the European Union with or without a deal on October 31st. Given the latest events, (no breakthroughs in talks between United Kingdom and EU, and the “suspension” of Parliament from September 11th to October 14th) the conclusion must be that the risk of United Kingdom leaving the EU without a withdrawal agreement (so-called "hard Brexit" or "no-deal Brexit") is vastly increasing.

Space Norway will offer satellite-based broadband for both civil and military users in the Arctic, using two satellites that Space-X will launch from the United States in 2022.