Norwegian energy firm Equinor (EQNR.OL) and its partners inaugurated the world's largest floating offshore wind farm on Wednesday, whose output will supply nearby oil and gas platforms and cut their greenhouse gas emissions.
The Hywind Tampen wind farm, where Equinor is partnering with other oil firms including OMV (OMVV.VI), Vaar Energi, majority-owned by ENI (ENI.MI), started producing power in November last year, with full output reached earlier this month.
Its 88 megawatts of capacity will cover around 35% of annual power demand for five platforms at the Snorre and Gullfaks oil and gas fields in the North Sea, about 140 km (87 miles) off Norway's west coast.
"We have a clear ambition in Norway with respect to CO2 emissions, to reduce them (by) 50% (by) 2030 ... To do that we need power," Kjetil Hove, Equinor's head of exploration and production in Norway, told Reuters onboard the platform.
"It is also about building a new industry that is going to be important to create more power in Norway."
The Hywind Tampen wind farm is expected to reduce CO2 (CO2) emissions by 200,000 tonnes annually, or 0.4% of Norway's total CO2 emissions in 2022.
Some environmentalists say the move is positive as it brings down the country's CO2 emissions, while others say Norway should instead stop producing oil and gas.
