The 

area 

plan 

will 

be 

crucial 

for 

Fjord 

Base

Kinn municipality is currently working on a new area plan that will apply to the entire municipality. The plan is important, since the old Vågsøy still has a plan from 2002 and Flora from 2017. The proposal has been out for consultation, and around 500 inputs were received. The goal is to send the plan out for a new and final consultation round in the summer of 2025. The municipality wants to facilitate transparency and debate before the political decision-making, with the aim of adopting the plan by the end of the year.

Fjord Base Group has provided clear input to the plan, based on our future plans and needs. The plan is absolutely crucial for the further development of the base. A forecast from Arkwright Research shows that activity at Fjord Base will increase in the coming years, before leveling off and then falling significantly towards 2050. Previous warnings that oil will not last forever now appear to be coming true.

Therefore, we are working purposefully with new areas of focus such as hydrogen, ammonia, offshore wind, data centers, and services for the defense sector. Of these, we have the greatest belief in offshore wind as a possible successor that can ensure continued activity, jobs, and value creation in the region.

Offshore wind as a new engine for growth

The government has an ambition to develop 30 GW of offshore wind by 2040. Norway has all the prerequisites for success: 50 years of offshore experience, strong professional communities, and some of the world’s most stable wind conditions. The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), on assignment from the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, has identified 20 possible assessment areas—several of the most attractive are along the westland coast, under the name Vestavind.

The government has an ambition to develop 30 GW of offshore wind by 2040. Norway has all the prerequisites for success: 50 years of offshore experience, strong professional communities, and some of the world’s most stable wind conditions.

Fjord Base Group wants to take a clear position in this market. We have long experience with base development and logistics, good infrastructure, sheltered waters, deep-water quays, flexible areas, and proximity to the relevant offshore wind areas. The competition between Norwegian bases is tough, but we have strong prerequisites for success.

While we wait for Norwegian offshore wind development to gain momentum, we are already actively working towards the United Kingdom—one of the world’s largest and most mature offshore wind markets. There, the goal is 50 GW by 2030, and the need for port capacity is great.

“Here, Fjord Base Group can contribute with good storage capacity and provide efficient logistics services for offshore wind components such as monopiles and jackets,” says Bjørn Erik Kringstad, Head of Sales, Marketing, and Communication at Fjord Base Group.

Smart land use provides new opportunities

In our input to the area plan, we have highlighted several needs to facilitate new and future activity:

• Expansion of quays at Naustholmen and regulation of related sea areas to strengthen today’s activity.
• Expansion to the south at Perholmen and efficient densification of already developed areas.
• Allocation of sea areas for temporary storage of floaters and wind turbines.
• Preservation of Grønenga as a regulated industrial area, with proximity to established industry and infrastructure.

We believe that new business areas should be located where there is already industry, expertise, and infrastructure.

To avoid unnecessary development of nature, today’s business areas must be utilized as efficiently as possible. That is why we have also reduced our planned area requirements for offshore wind, and removed the area in northern Årebrotsfjorden and parts of Terøya from our plans.

Collaboration with Havland creates synergies

Fjord Base Group is not alone in the development—collaboration with other players is crucial for holistic and sustainable development. To the west of Fjord Base, Havland has big ambitions. The company is developing land-based farming of cod, salmon, and ballan wrasse, and has plans to develop the Rota north area for industrial purposes. This could at the same time free up new land south of Perholmen by using locally sourced rock mass from Rota.

“This is a win-win situation for both Fjord Base Group and Havland—not least positive for the environment,” says Bjørn Inge Igland.

Havland recently reached an important milestone when they, as the first in the world, delivered 50 tonnes of land-based farmed cod of top quality for slaughter.

“This shows that we have both the technology and expertise for large-scale production. We have big ambitions for further growth but only have land available for the next 3–4 years. In order to continue developing, access to new land is absolutely essential,” concludes Bjørn Inge.