288 E. MOE ET AL.
subsea cables (Skagerrak 1–4) from Norway, constructed in 1976, 1977,
1993, and 2014, with a total capacity of 1.7 GW (Statnett 2011; TU
2019a). On windy days, when the Danish grid does not have the capacity
to accept all the wind energy produced domestically, the surplus is sold to
Norway. The price is low, because the surplus of Danish wind pushes the
power price down, allowing Norwegian producers to import cheap wind
power to cover domestic consumption while saving the water stored in
Norwegian hydropower reservoirs. Norwegian hydropower is instead sold
to Denmark on days with less wind and higher power prices. This illustrates the gain from tying different types of complementary renewables
together.
Norway also has eight interconnectors with Sweden, the first of which
dates from 1960, at a total capacity of nearly 4 GW. In 2018, 40% of
Norwegian energy exchange was with Sweden, 24% with Denmark. The
total power exchange amounts to around 30 TWh (Bysveen 2018, interview). To enjoy the same security of supply without this power exchange,
Norway would hence need to generate an extra 30 TWh domestically, i.e.,
approximately 20–25% of what hydropower generates in a normal year.
Norway has been a net exporter of electricity in 17 of the past
25 years. However, at an average of 8 TWh per year, with a maximum
of almost 15 TWh in 2015, this hardly constitutes a green battery for
Europe, let alone Germany. Compared to other European countries,
Norway is nonetheless abundant in interconnector capacity. In addition
to the interconnectors to Denmark and Sweden (and a minor line to
Finland), in 2008 NorNed, with a capacity of 0.7 GW, was built to
the Netherlands. Current power trading capacity with foreign countries
is 6.2 GW, increasing to 9 GW as NordLink and North Sea Link are
completed in 2020 and 2021, extending the number of Norwegian
foreign interconnectors to 17. If approved, the cable NorthConnect (to
Scotland) would have added another 1.4 GW of interconnector capacity
by 2024. The cable is however politically highly contentious and is now
put on hold by MOPE. Statnett itself favors another interconnector to
Sweden over NorthConnect, inter alia because of the possible future
decommissioning of Swedish nuclear power, which could remove as
much as 40 TWh from the Swedish grid. Skagerrak cables 1 and 2 to
Denmark will also have to be replaced within a decade (Energifaktanorge
2020b; NVE 2019; Statnett et al. 2019; TU 2019a).
subsea cables (Skagerrak 1–4) from Norway, constructed in 1976, 1977,
1993, and 2014, with a total capacity of 1.7 GW (Statnett 2011; TU
2019a). On windy days, when the Danish grid does not have the capacity
to accept all the wind energy produced domestically, the surplus is sold to
Norway. The price is low, because the surplus of Danish wind pushes the
power price down, allowing Norwegian producers to import cheap wind
power to cover domestic consumption while saving the water stored in
Norwegian hydropower reservoirs. Norwegian hydropower is instead sold
to Denmark on days with less wind and higher power prices. This illustrates the gain from tying different types of complementary renewables
together.
Norway also has eight interconnectors with Sweden, the first of which
dates from 1960, at a total capacity of nearly 4 GW. In 2018, 40% of
Norwegian energy exchange was with Sweden, 24% with Denmark. The
total power exchange amounts to around 30 TWh (Bysveen 2018, interview). To enjoy the same security of supply without this power exchange,
Norway would hence need to generate an extra 30 TWh domestically, i.e.,
approximately 20–25% of what hydropower generates in a normal year.
Norway has been a net exporter of electricity in 17 of the past
25 years. However, at an average of 8 TWh per year, with a maximum
of almost 15 TWh in 2015, this hardly constitutes a green battery for
Europe, let alone Germany. Compared to other European countries,
Norway is nonetheless abundant in interconnector capacity. In addition
to the interconnectors to Denmark and Sweden (and a minor line to
Finland), in 2008 NorNed, with a capacity of 0.7 GW, was built to
the Netherlands. Current power trading capacity with foreign countries
is 6.2 GW, increasing to 9 GW as NordLink and North Sea Link are
completed in 2020 and 2021, extending the number of Norwegian
foreign interconnectors to 17. If approved, the cable NorthConnect (to
Scotland) would have added another 1.4 GW of interconnector capacity
by 2024. The cable is however politically highly contentious and is now
put on hold by MOPE. Statnett itself favors another interconnector to
Sweden over NorthConnect, inter alia because of the possible future
decommissioning of Swedish nuclear power, which could remove as
much as 40 TWh from the Swedish grid. Skagerrak cables 1 and 2 to
Denmark will also have to be replaced within a decade (Energifaktanorge
2020b; NVE 2019; Statnett et al. 2019; TU 2019a).