The price of Norway’s crude oil was up 10 percent Monday morning, and even higher than that earlier, as markets opening for the week reacted to a drone bombing of Saudi Arabia’s huge oil processing plant over the weekend. High oil prices pump much more money into Norway’s economy, but analysts weren’t exactly celebrating. “We’ve […]
Oil minister ridicules Greens
September 13, 2019
A remarkable war of words has broken out between Norway’s oil minister from the conservative Progress Party (which logged major losses in recent local elections around the country) and one of the triumphant Greens Party’s most outspoken politicians in Oslo, Lan Marie Nguyen Berg. Oil industry officials have also reacted strongly to Berg’s victory speech […]
Greens ran steering parties off the road
September 12, 2019
NEWS ANALYSIS: Norway’s triumphant Greens Party (MDG) is suddenly posing a huge new challenge to the country’s two largest parties that have steered Norwegian government for years. As the chastened leaders of Labour and the Conservatives digest their heavy losses in this week’s local elections, both are being advised to take voters’ frustrations and climate concerns […]
Equinor vows to clean up oil spill
September 9, 2019
Norway’s state oil company Equinor (ex-Statoil) was being bashed by environmentalists over the weekend for failing to better secure its oil terminal in the Bahamas. Last week’s devastating Hurricane Dorian ripped the covers off oil storage tanks, resulting in an oil spill that Equinor itself reports is around 1.3 kilometers long. “This is a catastrophe, […]
ExxonMobil selling North Sea fields to local firm
September 6, 2019
Norwegian oil firm Vår Energi, formed through the merger of Point Resources and ENI Norge late last year, has confirmed it’s buying ExxonMobil’s remaining oil field stakes on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) reports that Vår Energi is expected to pay as much as USD 4.5 billion. Confirmation came after DN had […]
Quarreling spikes as election looms
September 3, 2019
NEWS ANALYSIS: With less than a week to go before important local elections are held all over Norway, Prime Minister Erna Solberg doesn’t only need to campaign against all of the country’s left-center opposition parties. She’s also had to spend much of this week dealing with more highly public quarreling within her conservative coalition, and […]
Sverdrup oil field eyes early start-up
September 3, 2019
Norway’s huge Johan Sverdrup oil field isn’t due to start producing until November, but the oil may start gushing sooner than that. State oil company Equinor has confirmed that it’s alerted shipping firms that they “can expect oil volumes from Johan Sverdrup in the near future.” Newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) reported how Oslo brokerage house […]
Equinor’s windmills stir more debate
August 26, 2019
The Norwegian government’s decision to fund half if not all of a huge offshore wind power project for state oil company Equinor is stirring up both praise and criticism. Critics believe the highly profitable Equinor should pay for the pioneering project itself, while others are glad the state is supporting wind energy that won’t involve […]
Shipping braves new gulf risks
July 24, 2019
Nearly 40 ships with ownership ties to Norwegian investors have been in or around Hormuz and the gulfs on both sides this week. They’re braving threats of arrest or sabotage amid high political tension but also higher oil prices and chartering rates. Norway’s venerable shipping industry has long lived with political risk around the world. […]
Two East Barents wells come up dry
June 18, 2019
State-owned oil company Equinor is disappointed while climate activists are relieved: Norway’s Petroleum Directorate has reported that a second well drilled by Equinor and its partners in a once-promising portion of the eastern Barents Sea was “classified as dry,” and has now been “permanently plugged and abandoned.” The failure to find oil in the well drilled […]
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