Norway, Europe’s biggest supplier of natural gas, plans to nationalize its pipeline network after current concessions expire in 2028, the government said in Oslo on Friday, Reuters quoted.
Norway has become Europe’s biggest supplier of gas in the months since Russia’s invasion began last year, as Gazprom cut supplies to several European countries that refused to comply with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ultimatum to pay for Russian energy imports in rubles.
The Nordic country surpassed Russia in exporting natural gas to European countries even before the explosions that disabled the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea last year, which supplied gas to Germany via Nord Stream 1.
The Oil and Gas Ministry in Oslo announced on Friday that it will send letters to the concessionaires of its network of gas pipelines totaling around 9,000 kilometers to inform them that “the state intends to exercise the right of administration at the end of the license period”.
“The state wants to obtain full state ownership of the central parts of the Norwegian gas transmission system,” the ministry also said, without providing any justification on this matter.
The Norwegian state plays an active role in its industry, being the main shareholder in the country’s largest bank (DNB), the largest telecommunications operator (Telenor) and the largest oil company (Equinor).
Norway’s gas pipeline network was built by oil companies
The country’s pipeline network is owned by Gassled, an operator created in 2003 as part of a multi-billion-dollar partnership between oil companies that were extracting natural gas offshore at the time.
The Norwegian state already owns 46.7% of Gassled through the state-owned company Petoro, with another 5% owned by Equinor.
The government in Oslo also said on Friday that in some cases it may pay compensation to shareholders of companies whose licenses are expiring, but gave no further details.
Gassled owns the vast majority of pipelines that deliver Norwegian natural gas to the European Union and the United Kingdom.
In the 20 years since the Gassled pipeline was built, oil companies have reduced or sold their stakes in its operator, often opting to sell them to investment firms.
Source: Hot News
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