Norway - March 2024

On 7 March, Fosen Vind, a joint venture led by state-owned enterprise Statkraft, reached an agreement with the Nord-Fosen siida, a local community of Indigenous Sámi people, over the construction of a windfarm on lands used by Sámi people for centuries for reindeer husbandry. The agreement establishes that the Roan Vind farm can continue its operations and includes provisions for the sustainable continuation of reindeer herding in the region. The agreement allocates wind energy for local purposes, establishes a government grant geared towards supporting Sámi culture, and foresees the designation of area for reindeer grazing in the winter (to be available starting from 2026-2027). In 2021, the Supreme Court ruled that the windfarm’s construction violated Indigenous rights, and ruled the project illegal unless remedies could be agreed. The Ministry of Energy has mediated the dispute among other stakeholders since April 2023. In December 2023, Fosen Vind reached a partial agreement with the Sør-Fosen sijte for the continued operations of the other site concerned by the court’s ruling, the Storheia windfarm.

Sources: Sametinget, Jurist, Regjeringen (1), Regjeringen (2), Aneo Group, NRK, Constitutional Court