STAVANGER, Norway — Norway's energy minister has accused the European Commission of hypocrisy in seeking to curb Arctic oil and gas drilling while member countries increasingly turn to the region to secure energy supplies.
The EU executive has pushed for a global ban on new drilling in the Arctic region since 2021 despite criticism from Arctic exporters — particularly Norway, which has become the EU's largest supplier of gas and its second-biggest supplier of oil as the bloc has cut down its trade with Russia.
Speaking to POLITICO on the sidelines of the Offshore Northern Seas conference in Stavanger, Norway, the country's energy minister, Terje Aasland, said the EU's stance was in open contradiction with the actions of member countries such as Poland and Germany, which are cutting deals with the Nordic nation.
While the EU talks about banning drilling, "we see different actions from the different countries that we want to talk with," he said. He pointed to Polish state energy company Orlen's recent investment in offshore oil fields in the sea around Norway, as well as Germany state energy company Uniper's 15-year agreement with Norwegian oil major Equinor to buy gas.
"When we're talking to Germany, they want that gas. And when you're talking to Poland, they want that gas," Aasland added at a panel earlier in the day.
The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, does not procure energy supplies itself but can regulate where imports can come from. But this, too, creates a fragmented approach as member countries pursue different strategies and priorities, leading to confused policymaking, Aasland told the panel.
"Europe's problem... is that we have 27 energy markets," he said. "They don't talk together. They have fine papers in the EU Commission. But when we're talking about realistic approach and discuss the energy pathway for the future, there are 27 different kinds of strategies, and I think that's a problem."
He said investment was now flowing to the U.S. and Asia. "What is backing Europe? Nothing," he said.
Aasland's comments also underscore a sense of unease in Norway, which is eager to expand and improve its drilling operations in a bid to slow a long-forecast decline in production that could see output fall significantly.
Torgeir Stordal, director general of the Norwegian Offshore Directorate, an agency responsible for regulating the country’s energy resources, noted in a panel Monday that even in the best case scenario, Norwegian oil production will slow from around 230 million standard cubic meters of oil equivalent (scm) in 2026 to around 150 million scm by 2050. In the worst case it could slow to 30 million scm. And even achieving the best case scenario will be costly, he said.
At the Stavanger conference, Norwegian officials and executives highlighted the need for further exploration and new technologies to better exploit these dwindling reserves, arguing that Norway's oil sector was crucial for the EU's energy security.
Many have pinned their hopes on the Barents Sea, a marginal sea north of Norway, that is the subject of increasing exploration. Aasland told POLITICO the sea was an "important area for future energy security in Europe," and urged European officials to visit the region to "see what it's about."
"When the public turns against [green] politics that may underline the needs for investments in safe jobs, developing industries and businesses," he told the panel earlier.
Environmental campaigners, however, have warned that expanding drilling in the region risks oil spills and damage to vulnerable marine life.
