Norway's energy outlook: Balancing oil, gas, and climate goals

The head of the Norwegian Ministry of Energy, Terje Aasland, presented the Norwegian government's three main energy principles in Stavanger. One of them is to maintain the production and export of gas and oil.

During the Offshore Northern Seas conference held in Stavanger—the main city of Norway's extraction industry—the head of the ministry overseeing the use of Norway's energy resources admitted that security in this field is today the greatest challenge for global economies.

Despite the global shift to renewable sources, oil and gas will remain essential in the foreseeable future. We estimate that our gas and oil fields will maintain high production levels, and to keep it that way, we will invest in further production capacities, said Terje Aasland.

According to the Norwegian Minister, this does not necessarily have to contradict the achievement of the climate goals that underlie the global energy transformation. By 2030, Norway's extraction industry is to reduce its emissions by half so that by 2050 it will achieve net zero emissions.

- We will maintain the position of a reliable and trustworthy energy supplier to Europe. Despite the global shift to renewable sources, oil and gas will remain essential in the foreseeable future, added the Norwegian Minister.

The Norwegian government assumes that specialized expertise in oil and gas extraction will support the development of clean energy production technologies, especially in the area of offshore wind energy. By 2040, Oslo plans to install installations with a total capacity of 30 gigawatts in its sea areas.

The sale of gas and oil accounted for 63% of Norway's total exports in 2023, reaching a value of 1.2 trillion kroner, or about $190 billion CAD.