NEWS ANALYSIS: Troubled state oil and energy company Equinor has resorted to a major clean-up of its finances, operations and even personnel before new CEO Anders Opedal officially takes over on Monday. The company has taken more huge losses on its disastrous US oil investments, reduced its oil price expectations and is soon expected to […]
Arctic oil losses report withheld
October 27, 2020
Norway’s Oil & Energy Ministry knew as early as 2013, when it was under the political control of former Oil Minister Ola Borten Moe, that already-controversial oil exploration in Norway’s Arctic could also generate huge losses. Moe’s ministry nonetheless withheld information about the potential losses from Parliament, which ultimately voted to allow Arctic oil drilling […]
Oil ministers face Equinor grilling, too
October 12, 2020
A long string of Norwegian oil ministers from across political party lines also have some explaining to do, regarding huge losses at state oil company Equinor. They formally serve as representatives of the state’s and taxpayers’ large ownership stake in Equinor, and will be called into an upcoming hearing on the losses in Parliament. Current […]
Equinor set to be grilled in Parliament
October 12, 2020
UPDATED: Members of the Norwegian Parliament will be summoning leaders of shamed state oil company Equinor, along with former oil ministers, to a committee hearing on huge losses at Equinor’s US operations. Results of a new probe into the losses reveal a lack of management control and poor follow-up when problems were pointed out by […]
Oil and gas to flow after strike ended
October 10, 2020
Norway’s giant offshore oil field Johan Sverdrup narrowly avoided having to shut down production after mediation ended a 10-day strike by offshore workers just before the weekend. The strike had been set to expand, threatening Sverdrup’s production in addition to that on six other platforms. Nearly a quarter of all total oil and gas production […]
Strike cuts 8% of offshore production
October 5, 2020
A strike by some workers on Norway’s offshore oil and gas platforms expanded on Monday, prompting state oil company Equinor to start shutting down production on four fields that it operates on the Norwegian continental shelf. Two more platforms are also affected, cutting Norway’s production of oil equivalents by around 8 percent and pumping less […]
Oil workers’ strike spreads
October 1, 2020
Labour organization Lederne has announced plans to expand a strike called among offshore oil workers to four more platforms in the North Sea. Another 126 members will be pulled off their jobs on Sunday if there’s no settlement by then. More than 40 members on Equinor’s large Johan Sverdrup platform went on strike Wednesday, in […]
Equinor challenged on several fronts
September 30, 2020
Norway’s state oil and energy company Equinor has literally had to put out lots of fires this week, just after it had to own up to huge losses on its US operations and shut down its office in Austin, Texas. Equinor’s former CEO who led the company into now-troubled operations, however, is earning more money […]
Equinor’s Melkøya fire under investigation
September 29, 2020
A spokewoman for Norway’s Petroleum Safety Authority called a fire Monday at Equinor’s gas plant on the island of Melkøya off Hammerfest “one of the most serious incidents in Norwegian petroleum history.” A full investigation was underway, to find out how it could have begun to burn. “A fire of this extent is very serious,” […]
Oslo on hold for carbon capture
September 21, 2020
They’re billing it as “the biggest climate project in Norwegian industry ever,” but the government’s long-awaited carbon capture, transport and storage plan could have been even bigger. Carbon emissions may now only be captured at the Norcem cement plant near Porsgrunn, meaning carbon capture at the Fortum recycling plant in Oslo will have to wait for […]
CURRENCY RATES