“Why has offshore wind power become so polarized in Sweden?”
2025-05-22
New Republic Insight #9
"Why has offshore wind power become so polarized in Sweden?"
Our European neighbors are investing heavily in offshore wind power. They are creating thousands of new jobs, new industries and large amounts of clean electricity, but in Sweden it is standing still. Despite good conditions. We have strong industrial companies, a robust energy system, long experience of major infrastructure projects and good offshore wind locations.
It's a strange situation where there is a will from parts of the business community to continue moving forward, which was particularly evident at the Swedish Offshore Wind Forum held last week. There is incredible strength in the companies working on this and I have no doubt that, with the right conditions, we can develop offshore wind power into a new basic industry.
But instead we are being left behind. Despite the many companies working to get new large-scale renewable electricity generation in place before 2035, significant uncertainties remain about whether this will actually happen in time. So the question is, is the offshore wind industry in Sweden lost?
The issue is highly polarized. One group is fighting for us to move forward while another group is slowing down the change. The same gloating that is seen when major battery manufacturers go bankrupt is seen when wind power is stopped by municipalities, as well as when the government stops more than ten wind power projects in the Baltic Sea. I think this is linked to a broader skepticism towards the social change that the green transition entails.
My colleague Stina Kinnerbäck noted a few weeks ago that we are already raising “do as Poland does” in the debate. I add, “do as everyone”. While others are building for the future, we in Sweden are debating whether we should even start. In Sweden, we usually praise ourselves for always being at the forefront of development. Now, instead, we are in the backwater. We need to get out of this impasse. Otherwise, we are backing into the future.
Dennis Fonseca Karlsson
Consultant, New Republic