In focus: Major renewable energy, clean fuel updates from the Nordic region

Major energy transition-related updates came from Nordic countries this week. An energy island for large-scale green hydrogen and offshore wind production has been proposed in Åland (Finland). Denmark has just selected winners of its first Power-to-X tender. The first containership to be powered by pure ammonia as fuel is scheduled to enter service in Norway in 2026. And this is just to name a few.

In Åland (Finland), Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), Flexens, and Lhyfe have decided to jointly launch the Åland Energy Island project. The energy island is planned to integrate integrated gigawatt-scale offshore wind with large-scale hydrogen production for use both on the Åland islands and in the wider European region.

The exact configuration of the Åland Energy Island will be developed in close coordination with the local government and other local stakeholders to maximize the benefits for Åland, according to the project partners.

Offshore wind is also being considered for powering clean fuel production within a new project in Sweden, where OX2 and Finland-based Nordkalk announced plans to jointly investigate the opportunities for the production of e-fuel on the island of Gotland.

The two companies will now initiate a pilot study on how a facility should be planned, with OX2 noting that it is developing large-scale offshore wind farms outside of Gotland that can supply the required electricity and hydrogen.

OX2 is developing the Aurora offshore wind project between the islands of Gotland and Öland and the Pleione-Ran offshore wind farm east of Gotland. Together, the wind farms can produce about 37 TWh of electricity, which corresponds to about a fourth of Sweden’s electricity consumption.

In Denmark, the Danish Energy Agency has closed the country’s first Power-to-X tender, selecting six projects, which will together bring more than 280 MW of electrolysis capacity.

The tender, which was launched in April, sought to procure only those hydrogen projects that used renewable energy sources and met the EU’s documentation requirements for green PtX fuels.

The winning companies and projects of the tender are Plug Power (Idomlund Denmark), European Energy (Windtestcenter Måde K/S), European Energy (Padborg PtX ApS), Electrochaea (Biocat Roslev) and European Energy (Kassø PtX Expansion ApS). The five winners have been awarded their entire offer, but as there was a remainder in the pool, HyProDenmark/Everfuel will also be offered a reduced offer, the agency said.

In Norway, Yara Eyde, said to be the world’s first containership to be powered by pure ammonia as fuel, is expected to be ready to start operations in 2026.

The vessel is intended to operate between Norway and Germany, making the route the first emission-free sea route to the continent, and is optimized for the trade corridor between Norway and Europe linking Oslo, Brevik, Hamburg, and Bremerhaven.

Yara Eyde is being developed by ammonia producer and shipowner Yara Clean Ammonia and the Norwegian container operator NorthSea Container Line, which plan to set up a joint venture, named NCL Oslofjord AS, to operate the ammonia-powered ship.

More updates from Norway made our news this week as Norwegian companies are rolling out solutions in the energy transition-related industries.

Ocean Sun and Inseanergy have entered into a cooperation agreement to supply green energy systems based on Ocean Sun’s floating solar technology to the aquaculture industry worldwide.

The aquaculture industry in both Norway and abroad has a large need to reduce emissions, according to Ocean Sun, whose CEO says the company’s floating solar technology is perfectly suited for reducing fossil fuel consumption.

Another Norwegian company, Ulstein Design & Solutions, has developed a new vessel design revolving around fuel efficiency.

The design is for a fuel-efficient cable laying and repair vessel and has been developed under a contract with Singapore-based Megamas Resources and their partner Renaissance Technologies (RTM).

According to Ulstein, the decision was taken in view of the shortage of cable vessels, as well as an aging fleet in the submarine cable industry. Megamas Resources will be introducing two newbuilds, with the first expected to be ready for service in early 2026, to fill the gap in meeting the industry demands.