Norway winds down
Fresh developments in the Arctic promise new production, but enthusiasm for fresh licenses has waned
A decline in applications for production licenses in Norway's latest oil and gas auction suggests that appetite for fresh exploration on the Norwegian continental shelf may have passed its peak. However, existing offshore discoveries are still being converted into substantial developments. The number of companies who applied for acreage in the 24th oil and gas licensing round plummeted to just 11, down from 26 in the previous round. Applicants this time included Statoil and mid-sized Norway specialists Aker BP and Lundin, as well as Shell, Centrica, OMV, Wintershall and Kuwait's Kufpec. Also in the list was Rosneft's Norwegian subsidiary, RN Nordic, which together with a proposed deal under
Also in this section
13 May 2025
A fall in Venezuelan output drives overall production lower, as Saudi Arabia starts to slowly bring more crude to the market
12 May 2025
With the gas industry’s staunchest advocates and opponents taking brutal blows, the sector looks like treading a path of insipid indifference
7 May 2025
From China blocking US LNG to Trump demanding that various countries import more of the fuel, the politicisation of LNG is on the rise
