Our partner Norwegian Offshore Wind is a Norwegian industry cluster with members from the offshore wind industry. Its goal is to establish world leading supply chains within floating offshore wind. With close to 400 members ranging from agile start-ups to large offshore wind developers, it is the biggest industry network in Norway.
Norwegian Offshore Wind is a key participant in the WENDY project and has responsibility for one of the pilot areas in addition to communication and dissemination of the project. The project is investigating the factors influencing public opinions concerning wind energy, with a specific emphasis on energy citizenship, environmental design, and energy landscapes. While WENDY focuses on both onshore and offshore wind, Norwegian Offshore Wind exclusively concentrates on the offshore component of the project.
The cluster has 14 employees, two of them which are working on the WENDY project, Martine Elise Farstad and Christopher Harman. Martine is the communication and dissemination manager for the Wendy project and is responsible for WENDY’s social media, website, and newsletter. Chris is the Innovation Manager for the cluster and has a background from the institute sector looking at effects of industrial activities. He supports the work being done in the WENDY projects on topics like turbines’ social acceptance and wind energy citizenship. He is also involved in the work related to the Norwegian pilot area together with Martine.
-WENDY provides a unique platform to explore the complexities of integrating offshore wind into our energy landscape, ensuring harmony with the environment, and public acceptance, says Christopher Harman, Innovation Manager in Norwegian Offshore Wind.
Norwegian Offshore Wind is decided to participate in the WENDY project, recognising the critical importance of the project’s focus. The decision to join stems from a commitment to addressing key issues and aspiring to generate effective solutions. In Norway, onshore wind has encountered resistance as a renewable energy source, necessitating the exploration of strategies that enable offshore wind to harmoniously coexist with other industries utilising the same ocean space. Central to this is to safeguard the environment and foster public acceptance of offshore wind initiatives. Norwegian Offshore Wind looks to WENDY as a platform that will offer valuable insights and approaches, shedding light on how to navigate these challenges and promote the sustainable integration of offshore wind energy into Norway’s energy landscape. This information can become valuable information for the members of Norwegian Offshore Wind and possibly also governmental bodies in Norway.