Sognekraft has signed an agreement with Veidekke to construct the Offerdal hydropower plant in Årdal, Norway. The target price contract is valued at approximately NOK 525m (US$50m), excluding VAT.
“Veidekke has a proud history in the construction of hydropower plants. These projects are often highly complex and long-term, and in the case of Offerdal, the process began with agreements with landowners back in the late 1990s,” explained Neal Nordahl, Director at Veidekke Infrastructure. “Sognekraft entered the project a few years later and acquired the majority of it from Veidekke. We are now very pleased that the project is finally being realised and that we can continue our strong collaboration with Sognekraft following the construction of the Feios hydropower plant, which has just been completed.”.
The Offerdal plant is expected to generate around 100GWh of renewable energy annually.The project will include a daily storage reservoir located inside a mountain, using a tunnel-based design similar to that implemented at the Feios hydropower plant.
“We are very pleased that, together with Veidekke, we can now initiate this development. At a time when the demand for new, flexible hydropower is increasing rapidly, this project will make an important contribution to the power balance while also creating value both locally and regionally,” said Terje Bakke Nævdal, CEO of Sognekraft.
The development will consist of two power plants: an underground facility with two turbines and a surface installation. Both will operate with a head of approximately 400m. The upper reservoir will have a capacity of 15,000m3, while the lower reservoir will hold 61,000m3. The underground tunnel system will extend nearly 6.5km.
Construction is scheduled to begin after Easter, with power generation planned to start towards the end of 2028.
The contract will be included in Veidekke’s order backlog for the first quarter of 2026.
Earlier this month it was announced that ÅEnergi Vannkraft had awarded NVeidekke a contract worth nearly NOK580m (US$60m) to construct the Øygard hydropower plant in Åseral municipality in Agder, southern Norway.
