Fossil Energy – Norway
Norway can continue to be a stabile supplier of oil and gas and contribute to Europe’s energy security for many years to come.
This claim means that Norway must continue to develop the Norwegian shelf.
“Norway can be a stabile exporter of oil and gas, and thus contribute to Europe’s energy security, for many years to come.” Those were the words of Director General Torgeir Stordal at the roundtable conference in Molde on Wednesday.
The conference topic was the geopolitical situation and the importance of Norwegian gas supplies to Europe. The audience included politicians and representatives from regional business and industry.
Norway stepped up when Russian gas supplies were cut off last year, and is now Europe’s largest supplier of gas.
“With the authorities’ facilitation, gas producers on the Norwegian shelf joined in a considerable effort to deliver as much gas as possible to Europe in 2022. Norwegian gas is now a critical factor for European gas supplies and energy security,” Stordal said.
Production on the Norwegian shelf remains at a high level, and it will increase over the next few years.
“There are several reasons for this. We actually have as many as 93 fields on the shelf. Fields that shut down are replaced by new ones at a steady pace, and older fields are producing both longer and more than previously expected. Gas production has remained at a stabile high level for a number of years, and now accounts for more than half of total production,” he said.
In 2022, the Norwegian shelf produced 122 billion standard cubic metres (Sm3) of gas, which represents an increase of eight per cent from the previous year. This increase corresponds to the gas consumption of one-third of all German households.
Gas production was 58.4 billion Sm3 in the first six months of the year, which is about four per cent lower than last year. This is mainly due to maintenance at onshore facilities in the early part of summer. The NPD expects that gas production will hold steady at the 2022 level for the next four to five years.
