Norway was expanding its offshore oil and gas industry even before the US and Israel began bombing Iran, cutting off Persian Gulf oil supplies in the process. Now a majority of Norwegian leaders think it’s more important than ever to keep Norway’s own oil flowing, despite its contribution to climate change.
“We will continue to search for more oil, produce and deliver it to Europe,” Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre declared in January, two months before US President Donald Trump set off a new energy crisis and market chaos. Now Støre is repeating his message of “developing, not phasing out” Norway’s oil and gas resources and supplies, especially in troubled times, and has a majority in Parliament to do so.
His government recently offered 57 new licenses to oil companies for more exploration on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. That was up from last year, and the government has also been eager to open up new areas of the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and the Barents for oil exploration and production. Støre has the backing of both Norwegian industry and labour organizations, and stresses that Norwegian gas has been even more important for Europe since Russia invaded Ukraine more than four years ago. Russian gas supplies were cut off, leading to shortages especially during the winter.