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Nordic BioBuz: From biodiversity-enhancing ecological engineering to a stronger business case for offshore wind
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Aquatic Resources.
OX2/Project Björkskär AB.
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Safety and Transport, Maritime department.
OX2/Project Björkskär AB.
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2026 (English)Report (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

The Nordic BioBuz project, a collaboration between OX2, Under Ytan, Nemo Seafarms, RISE, and SLU, supported by Nordic Innovation and Mistra Co-Creating Better Blue, explored how offshore wind, low-trophic aquaculture, and ecological engineering can form the basis of a regenerative, multi-use business model. Over two field seasons, the project tested biodiversity-enhancing structures, developed biodiversity credit frameworks, and modelled nutrient and ecosystem benefits. Offshore wind energy is expanding rapidly across the Nordic region, becoming central to achieving a fossil-free energy system, yet it competes for limited sea space in the Baltic Sea, one of the world’s most stressed marine ecosystems. Europe faces urgent climate and biodiversity crises, and solutions are needed to deliver renewable energy while restoring ecosystems, enhancing food security, and increasing societal acceptance. Multi-use and multifunctional offshore infrastructure offer a promising approach. By enabling structures to serve multiple purposes, such as biodiversity enhancement, low-trophic aquaculture, and environmental monitoring, multi-use concepts can reduce spatial conflict, improve ecological outcomes, and generate economic value. Low-trophic aquaculture provides nutrient removal and habitat creation benefits, while supporting Europe’s food security. Current business models rarely capture these benefits, leaving nature undervalued and creating a biodiversity funding gap. Field pilots in the Åland Sea and Björkskär showed that engineered surfaces accelerated colonization by habitat-forming species, particularly blue mussels, creating reef-like communities and significantly higher species richness compared to standard foundations. Mussel colonization also provides measurable nutrient removal, demonstrating tangible ecological value. These findings support a biodiversity crediting approach and highlight the potential for multi-use designs to combine ecological and economic benefits. The project developed a proof-of-concept business model combining biodiversity credits, “dark green” electricity premiums, and low-trophic aquaculture revenues. Biodiversity-positive offshore wind can unlock new revenue streams, reduce regulatory and environmental risk, improve access to ESG-aligned financing, and enhance competitiveness in future concessions. Overall, Nordic BioBuz shows that regenerative offshore wind is technically feasible, ecologically beneficial, and economically promising. By integrating biodiversity enhancement and low-trophic aquaculture, offshore wind farms can become multifunctional ecological assets, supporting climate goals, improving marine biodiversity, and creating new economic opportunities in a socially accepted and resource-efficient way.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden , 2026. , p. 55
National Category
Environmental Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ri:diva-81660OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ri-81660DiVA, id: diva2:2062802
Note

QC 20260527

Available from: 2026-05-27 Created: 2026-05-27 Last updated: 2026-05-27

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23456785 of 14
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