Labour backs new Svalbard coal mine

Norway’s Labour Party was attracting more criticism from environmental organizations on Tuesday, after its parliamentary group decided to support the opening of a new coal mine on the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. The environmentalists call it another example of hypocrisy and double standards. The move, reports newspaper VG, has spurred dissent within Labour and comes [...]

South Pole parties mixed pride, PR

Norwegian officials made the most of the 100th anniversary of Roald Amundsen’s arrival at the South Pole on Wednesday, with the king, the crown prince and the prime minister strategically placed to hail December 14, 1911 as “a proud day for Norway.” The celebrations reflected pride and public relations (PR), as Norwegian interest in both [...]

More climate cuts sought at home

Two of the three parties making up Norway’s government coalition are demanding that more emissions cuts be made at home, after the Kyoto agreement on cuts was extended at the UN climate conference in Durban. They’re not satisfied with Norway’s tendency to rather offer funds for cuts elsewhere in the world. As a major oil [...]

Expeditions late for South Pole party

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg was flown into the South Pole this week and now some of the leaders of new polar expeditions have resorted to air transport as well. They failed to get there on skis fast enough and didn’t want to miss celebrations of Norwegian hero Roald Amundsen’s historic arrival in 1911. “This wasn’t [...]

Safari tour lands MPs on defensive

Four Norwegian Members of Parliament were fending off criticism on Friday after they ditched a session of the UN climate conference in Durban, South Africa and went off on a safari tour instead, while two others went on a tour of the city. Their sightseeing left just one colleague to follow climate negotiations. Newspaper Dagens [...]

Jens, stay home!

COMMENTARY – VIEWS ON THE NEWS: Has anyone else noticed the irony of how people worried about the climate – including Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg – spend vast amounts of time, energy and taxpayers’ money flying all over the globe, burning up jet fuel and generating untold tons of carbon emissions? On another topic: [...]

Another government quarrel erupts

Members of Norway’s left-center government coalition are quarreling again, with cabinet minister Kristin Halvorsen now complaining about her government colleague, Oil & Energy Minister Ola Borten Moe, on Facebook. Differences over environmental policies are at the root of the conflict, and opposition leaders want Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg to sort things out. Environmentalists see Stoltenberg, [...]

Norway among top climate offenders

As world leaders gather once again to tackle climate issues, this time in South Africa, comes confirmation that Norway’s oil and gas industry makes it among the world’s major polluters. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg has maintained a high climate-friendly profile, but now he’s “deeply worried” that any new emission-cutting agreement will be struck. The CO2 [...]

Experts predict a mild winter ahead

Climate researchers and state meteorologists are forecasting a much milder winter than the past two in Norway, while ski resort operators have been forced to postpone the opening of the ski season once again because of lack of snow. Meanwhile, political efforts to reverse climate change seem to have melted along with the ice. Only [...]

Norway backsliding on climate issues

Environmentalists were calling Norwegian Oil & Energy Minister Ola Borten Moe “a public relations agent” for Statoil on Friday, while industrial firm Aker reportedly may shut down its Aker Clean Carbon unit. Concerns are rising that Norway’s government and industry are backsliding on lofty promises to hinder climate change by cutting carbon emissions. Moe has [...]

UN leader in Oslo, ‘listens to critics’

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was back in Oslo on Monday as part of a Nordic tour that, in Norway, included the launch of a new energy accessibility initiative, a session on financing climate measures and a tribute to the late explorer and humanitarian Fridtjof Nansen. Ban also told an Oslo-based newspaper before he left [...]

Oil & Energy Minister under siege

Norway’s relatively new government minister in charge of oil and energy, Ola Borten Moe, has managed to infuriate the Norwegian environmental movement to a degree rarely seen in local political debate. Some of Norway’s top environmental advocates are calling for Moe’s resignation, and he’s also upset members of his own small Center Party. The Center [...]

Funds to save rainforests pile up

Norway has committed billions in funding to help preserve the world’s rainforests but much of the money remains sitting in bank accounts, reports Oslo-based Development Today. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg’s high-profile effort to reverse climate change through rainforest preservation seems to be facing lengthy delays. The money has been forthcoming, but much of it hasn’t [...]

Shale gas protests spoil Statoil’s party

Statoil was celebrating 10 years as a stocklisted company this week and promising more growth, but not everyone was keen to congratulate Norway’s biggest company. Instead, angry residents in the eastern United States believe Statoil’s much-touted shale gas extraction is contaminating their drinking water, leaving Statoil with another environmental problem. Statoil already has been under [...]

Statoil expands amidst controversy

Norwegian oil company Statoil is barreling ahead with major expansion plans for its oil and gas production, despite ongoing complaints from the country’s environmental lobby. While one activist accused Statoil of spreading its “dirty business” all over the world, company management was greasing the skids for growth. Lars Haltbrekken, head of Friends of the Earth [...]

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