In Sweden, 13 wind projects in the Baltic Sea stopped for safety reasons

Construction permits for these offshore wind farms were not granted because "they would have had an unacceptable impact" on the defence of this Scandinavian country, Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari explained at a press conference.

The move comes after a study by the armed forces, made public last Friday, showed that the projects could significantly disrupt Swedish defence sensors in the Baltic, a stone's throw from the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.

The rotating towers and blades of wind turbines emit radar echoes and produce a number of other interferences, particularly underwater, affecting, for example, the ability to detect potential submarines.

"In view of the serious security situation that Sweden is currently experiencing, defence interests must weigh more heavily in the balance," Defence Minister Pål Jonson stressed during the press conference.

If they had been maintained, the 13 offshore wind farms would have delayed the detection of a missile attack - ballistic or cruise - with the alert time going from two to one minute, he explained.

"Highly militarized" enclave of Kaliningrad

These were planned for an area extending from Åland in the north to Öresund in the south.

The minister added that the relative proximity of the "highly militarised" Russian enclave of Kaliningrad had been "a central element" in the government's decision.

"One of the lessons from the war in Ukraine is that Russia uses many long-range systems, both ballistic missiles and cruise missiles," Pål Jonson said.

Tensions in the region have risen since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

A new NATO military base has been opened in Rostock, in northern Germany, with the aim of coordinating the forces of the Alliance member states in the area facing Russia.

The Kremlin sees the increased NATO presence near its borders as a provocation and summoned the German ambassador on October 22 to protest the opening of the naval command center.

With the accession of Sweden, after that of Finland, all the Baltic Sea coastal states, with the exception of Russia, are now members of the Atlantic Alliance.

"The Ministry of Defence notes that there is a need to cooperate with several of our neighbouring countries in managing cross-border impacts on defence interests," Stockholm notes in a memorandum seen by AFP.

At the same time, energy needs from renewable sources are among the priorities.

Electricity consumption in Sweden could reach at least 300 TWh by 2045, double the current level, according to the document.

"It is problematic that the government is categorically closing down an entire area of ​​potential electricity production," reacted Svensk vindkraft, the Swedish wind industry association.

According to the defence minister, areas off the southwest coast of Sweden and the Bay of Bothnia are better suited for offshore wind projects.

In total, 24 offshore projects are on the table of the Swedish government, including the thirteen that were rejected.

A project has just been given the green light by the government, Poseidon, on the southwest coast of Sweden, off Stenungsund.