The state will take over the property named as Austre Advent Fjord.
– I am pleased that the acquisition has now been completed, and that the property is formally in state owned, Industry Minister Monica Mæland states.
Price tag is NOK 300 million
The owners of Austre Advent Fjord contacted the Ministry of Industry and Fisheries in January 2014 with an inquiry as to whether the state would be interested in buying the property.
Based on an assessment of inter alia and the property’s location close to Longyearbyen and a desire that such property should remain Norwegian, the Minister of Industry has decided that the Government is prepared to take over the property.
The owners accepted the government’s bid of NOK 300 million in the autumn. The legal basis for Austre Advent Fjord was transferred to the Ministry of Industry and Fisheries Ministry in March, and the acquisition was formally completed this week.
Northeast of Longyearbyen
Austre Advent Fjord is located just northeast of Longyearbyen, on Spitsbergen (Svalbard). The property is approximately 217.6 square kilometres, accounting to approximately 0.35 percent of Svalbard area.
Closing of the transaction needed the consent from the Parliament. The Government made this proposal last autumn, and the Parliament has endorsed the proposal.
With this acquisition, the state now owns around 99 percent of Svalbard’s total area.
Source: government.com / Norway Today