In a consultation statement, the Norwegian Environment Agency warns that new oil and gas fields in the Barents Sea may be profitable for the oil companies, but not for society.
The Norwegian Environment Agency strongly criticizes the government’s announcement of new exploration areas for the oil industry in the 25th licensing round, writes Klassekampen.
The Directorate believes that the government has not taken the climate risk into account, nor has it studied the socio-economic consequences of new exploration fields.
The high exploration and operating costs in the Barents Sea, as well as the possibility that demand for oil and gas will decline due to climate policy, meaning that the directorate warns that the «total socio-economic profitability» can be «tipped in a negative direction».
– “Therefore, we are surprised that such an important topic is not covered in this announcement,” says director Ellen Hambro in the Norwegian Environment Agency to the newspaper.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
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