The future of Norwegian oil production in question

If environmentalists win this battle, the future of Norwegian oil will be in question. A complete withdrawal from oil and gas exploration in the Lofoten region could jeopardize exploration in the Barents Sea shelf, which is estimated to contain up to 16 billion barrels of the main raw materials, to stem the decline in production in Norway, according to Norwegian Energy Minister Terje Sovikness.

Drilling in the Lofoten area has been one of the most delicate problems in Norway in recent years. Consistent government action maintains a temporary ban on work in this area while developing exploration work in the Barents Sea. However, a permanent ban on Lofoten could mean future challenges for the industry.

Fluctuations in the ruling party are damaging to the entire oil industry, as they undermine Norway's most important competitive advantage: stable investment conditions regardless of political change.

Norway is one of the largest oil and gas producers in Europe, but a significant part of the currently active fields are already old, and their production will decline in the coming years. Therefore, the future of this sector depends on the exploration of new deposits, especially in areas that have not yet been exploited, such as the Barents Sea. In 2017, oil production in Norway was about 1.6 million barrels per day, which gives more than 580 million barrels of raw materials throughout the year (about 80 million tons of oil), and natural gas production is about 341 million cubic meters. per day, which is more than 124 billion cubic meters per year.