AFRY assesses environmental impact and prepares land use plan for Finland offshore wind power project
AFRY assesses environmental impact and prepares land use plan for Finland offshore wind power project
Finland has the potential to considerably increase its wind power capacity. Korsnäs offshore wind power park is a great example of Finland’s emerging offshore wind power market.
Metsähallitus, a state-owned enterprise plans to develop an offshore wind power park in Korsnäs, Ostrobothnia. If implemented, the investment would exceed a billion Euros. AFRY has been chosen to deliver environmental impact assessment and prepare the local master plan. AFRY’s scope of work also includes technical engineering for the project. If implemented, energy production in the offshore wind power park in Kornäs would begin at the earliest in 2028, according to Metsähallitus.
Metsähallitus manages almost one third of Finland and its natural resources – forests, shores, waters and soils and it aims at tripling wind power production on its sites by 2030. The nominal power of Korsnäs offshore wind power park would be 1,400 megawatts, which corresponds 54% of the total wind power capacity in Finland last year. There would be 70-100 wind turbines built in Korsnäs offshore wind power park, each of them having nominal power of 12-30 megawatts.
The project is familiar to AFRY, as AFRY has worked as a consultant in pre-engineering for Korsnäs offshore wind power park. The initiative for zoning was accepted in the municipality of Korsnäs in 2020, and the environmental impact assessment began this spring.
The sea area in front of Korsnäs presents a significant wind energy resource with average wind speeds exceeding 9 m/s. In addition, the depth and geology of the sea area is suitable for building offshore wind power. Fishing, fish species and migratory birds have been taken into account in the project. The impact on the characteristics of Kvarken archipelago, its natural heritage and natural habitat types are being taken into account in the environmental impact assessment and permission processes.
“Korsnäs offshore wind power project is a remarkable project in Finland’s emerging offshore wind power market. Through this project, a wide array of AFRY experts and cooperation partners can take pride in their contribution to sustainable development” comments Piia Heikkinen, manager of wind and solar energy in Finland at AFRY.
