“We will explore more, find more and extract more. Therefore, it is important to ensure that companies have stable access to exploration areas. Never before has a larger area been advertised in a licensing round. It is good for Norway and for Europe,” Energy Minister Terje Aasland said in a statement.
Further exploration and more discoveries are crucial to limiting the decline in production on the continental shelf after 2030. The expansion this year gives companies access to significant new acreage in the Barents Sea and we are thus even better positioned to clarify the resource base in the north,” added Aasland.
Comments:
- This is a prudent policy decision that underscores Norway’s commitment to sustaining oil and gas production.
- This should be good news for Equinor, which is 2/3 Norwegian govt owned and has made some ill-advised offshore wind investments.
- Based on the Energy Minister’s quotes (above), one senses that Equinor’s wind investments, particularly those in the US, may not be fully aligned with Norwegian policy.
- Is this a bit embarrassing for the UK, which has essentially been sanctioning its own offshore oil and gas industry? Only last week, Aasland met with his UK counterpart Ed Miliband and entered into a “green industrial partnership” (photo below).
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 