Norway Awards 53 New E&P Licenses on its Continental Shelf

 

Norway has awarded 53 new offshore oil and gas E&P licenses for acreage on its continental shelf, with 20 different companies participating in the auction round.

The so-called APA round of predefined auction areas covered mature producing regions in the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea (along with one single permit in the Bering Sea). It favors tieback developments to existing platforms. Awardees in this round included Aker BP, Shell, and a host of independents; Equinor was a clear winner with 27 licenses, more than half the total. 

Norway's energy minister, Terje Aasland, announced the results at an annual meeting of the Norwegian Petroleum Association. Protesters with Extinction Rebellion and other environmental groups blockaded the venue's doors during his speech. 

"If we are to uphold a stable production in the years to come, we must explore more and invest more," he said in an address. "We must continue to make new discoveries in order to maintain Norway as a reliable and stable supplier of gas and oil to Europe."

Norway's oil and gas exports are critical to European energy security, particularly when it comes to natural gas. Norway now supplies nearly a third of the EU's natural gas imports, providing an essential replacement for Russian volumes. Following the invasion of Ukraine, a disagreement over payment terms led Russian state gas producer Gazprom to shut off the tap on most of its exports to Western Europe, ending a steady and inexpensive energy supply chain that had been in place since the Cold War. 

Last year, driven by strong demand from the EU, Norway's natural gas production hit a new record of 124 billion cubic meters, even higher than the surge in output in 2022. Equinor's giant Troll and Johan Sverdrup fields led the way, and 92 other fields contributed with low downtime and steady output. (Troll alone put out 42.5 billion cubic meters, Equinor said.)

"It has been a great year," Norwegian Offshore Directorate chief Torgeir Stordal told E24. "We have set a new production record for gas and exported more gas than ever to a Europe that is in great need of it."

The directorate believes that this high level of production can be sustained for up to three years before it declines, buying breathing room for Europe. Producers are investing $23 billion in projects on the Norwegian shelf in 2025, the highest amount since 2014 - the year the offshore downturn began.