Norway to supply more gas to Europe this summer

By Nerijus Adomaitis

OSLO – Norway will increase its pure gasoline output within the coming months, maintaining manufacturing greater than regular by the summer season and delivering greater volumes to Europe at a time of shortages and hovering costs, Equinor stated on Wednesday.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has contributed to already excessive gasoline costs and left European nations scrambling to fill storage depleted by winter consumption and to search out alternate options to Russian provide.

By suspending some upkeep and making different changes along with pipeline operator Gassco, Equinor will ship extra gasoline, it stated.

“We will export extra gasoline this summer season,” Equinor govt Irene Rummelhoff stated in a press release.

Adjusted manufacturing permits from the Norwegian authorities will permit the Oseberg area to extend gasoline exports by round 1 billion cubic metres (bcm) within the interval till Sept. 30, whereas the Heidrun area can enhance by 0.4 bcm this 12 months.

“1.4 billion cubic metres of gasoline meets the gasoline demand of round 1.4 million European properties for a 12 months,” Equinor stated.

As well as, the Troll area, the North Sea’s largest supply of gasoline, can enhance output within the occasion that different fields face outages, thus enhancing the general robustness of provide, Equinor stated.

In 2021, Norway’s gasoline manufacturing amounted to 113 bcm, supplying near 1 / 4 of gasoline demand within the European Union and Britain, whereas Russia lately met round one third of Europe’s wants, Norwegian authorities information confirmed.

Whereas Norwegian oil and gasoline fields are producing at near-full capability, the combo between oil and gasoline can in some instances be adjusted. The federal government units quotas for fields to make sure the nation is ready to maximise its output over time.

Norway pumps round 4 million barrels of oil equal per day, divided virtually equally between oil and pure gasoline.

The nation exports round 95% of its gasoline by way of an in depth subsea pipeline community linking it to terminals in Germany, Britain, France and Belgium. A pipe to Poland will likely be accomplished later this 12 months.