Norway Flashcards
Give two stats about how big an exporter Norway is.
1) 5th largest gas exporter
2) 8th largest oil exporter
Name some countries which receive the most energy from Norway.
Germany, Belgium, Uk, France. Mainly gas.
Describe the location and geography of Norway.
- Southern Norway has a high annual rainfall, at about 2,000mm a year, with no dry season.
- 15-20 rainy days every month.
- Evaporation rates where most of the water is stored is very low.
- Many high lakes, at about 1,000m above sea level.
- Deep, narrow valleys can be dammed to form lower-lying reservoirs eg Suldalsvatn reservoir.
- High relief with mountains eg Reinheimen.
Describe the electricity energy mix, and state what year this is for.
2015
- 96% hydroelectric
- 1.8% natural gas
- 1.7% wind
What is Norway’s largest HEP complex?
Ulla-Førre, capacity of 2100 megawatts. It is situated 250km of Oslo, and close to two other main cities, making transfer of electricity relatively easy.
Talk about Norway’s capacity and how it links to energy.
Norway has a capacity surplus, but due to how weather dependent Norway’s energy supply is, this does not ensure an energy surplus. During cold winter months, the available capacity is around 80% of the installed capacity.
Give some factors which affect the supply of electricity in Norway.
- Weather - during dry periods, HEP production decreases. However no dry months in southern Norway, so not a massive problem. Highest water inflow in spring, lowest in late summer. Storms have caused power outages. In 2019, Norway had to import over 12,000 GW hours of electricity due to low water levels as there was a heatwave.
- Climate change - climate change leading to more extreme weather events, damaging power infrastructure. Hotter climates with less rain = less HEP, vice versa.
- Technology - development of new silicon solar modules has made it possible to create thinner, more flexible solar panels which can withstand power surges. Norway connects to a Scandinavian grid network and to the UK, who import a large supply of electricity. Statnett, designated transmission system operator to balance supply and demand, and provide the country with reliable electricity.
- Cost - HEP quite low cost as water is free. Due to large reservoir capacity, production can be rapidly increased and decreased at low cost. Can retain water or produce electricity immediately depending on current electricity price and demand.
Current affairs - Russia Ukraine war led to Norway exporting more electricity than usual to Russia reliant countries, less for Norway.
Describe Norway’s demand for electricity.
- Norway consumes second most electricity per person among the IEA agency.
- About 125 TWh a year.
- Industry is the highest consumer of electricity, followed by residential.
- Access to cheap hydropower has led to the high demand for energy as many people can afford it.
- Over 80% of new cars bought are electric.
Describe changes in demand for Norway, both when they happen and why.
- Happen annually with seasonal changes, with demand peaking in winter due to the cold.
- Residential demand fluctuates throughout the day, eg when it’s dark needing light.
- Overall, demand increasing as rising household incomes and electrification on transport, digital devices and growing population.
How does Norway reduce it’s electricity demand?
- Government ensuring new buildings are energy efficient eg triple glazing.
- Energy saving advice given by a public agency “Enova SF”.
- Industrial energy efficient network, encourages energy efficiency, companies can obtain grants to analyse for energy saving. Over 900 companies received info and financial support for lowering their energy consumption.
Environmental impacts of Norway’s electrical energy strategy?
- Creation of HEP reservoirs leads to increase of greenhouse gas emissions from decomposition of organic matter, however as Norway is cold, methane production is lower.
- HEP lead to flooding of houses, cropland and pastures.
- HEP uses much more land than other energy sources.
- HEP affects wildlife, eg dams making it difficult for sediments/nutrients to flow freely, and make it harder for fish to roam.
- HEP in Norway having a lower carbon footprint compared to in other countries. Also, generally HEP produces many GGs to build, but in long-run reduce GGEs.
How are the environmental impacts being managed?
- Modern Norwegian HEP license requires the water flowing in the river must be stated at all times to keep a minimum water level, allowing fish to migrate upstream.
- A dam that blocked the Tromsa River in Norway for over 100 years was blown up in 2022, freeing up migratory routes for fish.
Describe Norway’s electrical energy strategy for the future?
Norway has the second highest energy demand in the world, and this will continue to grow. This is mainly due to:
* Transport - continuing electrification.
* Industry - eg plans for increased number of battery factories.
* Domestic - will actually increase due to global warming, better insulation and more energy-efficient technology. Lighting will increase as more buildings are constructed.
How will Norway cope will this overall increase?
* HEP will continue to contribute massively, with new small-scale plants being built and upgrading existing plants. Climate change will increase precipitation and therefore HEP capacity. Not a huge growth in production though as it is difficult to develop it much more.
* Big push for wind energy, as West coast is advantageous for wind developments. Wind is hoped to become cheaper than HEP. Due to public concern of noise, impact on birds, recreation, these onshore installations are likely to be delayed/scaled down, making floating offshore wind more viable. Floating wind is currently more expensive to build, but can supply cheaper energy to Europe as increased underwater interconnection capacity. Wind energy now dominating energy investments. 36 onshore and offshore wind projects planned for next 5 years, eg Floating offshore wind farm Hywind Tampen, the world’s first FOW to power offshore oil and gas platforms.
* Some small-scale solar power as falling technology costs.
