RusEnergy

22 January 2007 - Upstream onLine - Norway should develop plans to tap Arctic oil and gas resources jointly with Russia, even though Moscow rejected its companies for work on the massive Shtokman gas project, Norwegian Oil and Gas Minister Odd Roger Enoksen said today. Russia's Gazprom turned down bids from Norway's Statoil and Norsk Hydro, as well as from three other foreign companies, last year to help develop the Shtokman field in the Barents Sea, which has enough gas to supply the world for a year. "For some, the story of co-operation with Russia ended with its decision in October last year to develop the Shtokman field without foreign participation," Enoksen told a seminar on the future of the Arctic today, Reuters reported. "This shows, in my opinion, a lack of perspective," he said in the far northern Norwegian town of Tromso. "It is in both countries interest to develop an ever-closer co-operation to ensure sustainable management of the natural resources in the Barents Sea." Gazprom's decision effectively delayed Shtokman's start-up for years, analysts said, since Norwegian companies will now be reluctant to provide breakthrough proprietary technology in future. It also derailed hopes for a quick solution to bilateral issues ranging from access to various parts of the Arctic to shipping and uniform environmental protection standards. Studies show that a quarter of the world's undiscovered oil and gas deposits could be in the Arctic, with new drilling technology and receding ice cover making access easier.