US Opens Northernmost Diplomatic Station, in Arctic Norway
The United States on Friday opened its northernmost diplomatic station, highlighting the increased importance of the Arctic region for Washington at a time when cooperation among Arctic nations has been hit by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the opening of the station, in Tromsoe, Norway, in June, as a means for the United States to have a "diplomatic footprint above the Arctic Circle"."Symbolically, it is significant," Andreas Oesthagen…
In Case Affecting Oil, Norway Supreme Court Says EU Ships Cannot Fish Arctic Snow Crab
OSLO, March 20 (Reuters) - Norway's Supreme Court ruled on Monday that EU ships cannot fish for snow crab off the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic in a case also deciding who has the right to explore for oil and minerals in the region.At stake was whether EU vessels had the right to catch snow crab, whose meat is considered a delicacy by gourmets in Japan and South Korea, in the same way as Norwegian vessels did.But what is valid for the snow crab, a sedentary species living on the seabed…
Norway's Supreme Court to Hear Arctic Snow Crab Case Affecting Oil
Norway's Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear arguments on whether EU ships can fish for snow crab off the Arctic islands north of Norway, in a case that could decide who has the right to explore for oil and minerals in the region.At stake is whether EU vessels have the right to catch snow crab, whose meat is considered a delicacy by gourmets in Japan and South Korea, in the same way than Norwegian vessels do.A Latvian fisheries company applied to the non-EU country in 2019 for a fishing license to catch the species…
Norway's Snow Crab Ruling Boosts Oil Claim
A court delivered a painful nip to European Union fishermen on Thursday by tightening Norway's grip on snow crab catches in the Arctic, a ruling that may also let Oslo claw more control of oil and gas from other nations.Fishermen from the European Union must ask permission from Oslo to catch snow crab — whose meat is a delicacy for gourmets from Canada to Japan — in Arctic waters north of Norway, the Norwegian Supreme Court said in a unanimous ruling.The court dismissed an appeal…
Sanctions Dampen Traffic on Russia's Arctic Route
Often heralded as new shipping lane, Arctic shipments fall. Western sanctions on Russia are restricting the Arctic shipping route along its north coast to domestic cargoes and energy exports with many foreign firms staying away after test voyages on a fabled short-cut between Europe and Asia. A decline in foreign shipments on the Northern Sea Route (NSR) in 2014, interrupting gains in recent years as ice retreats, dims prospects for a shipping lane that is often seen as a rare positive side-effect of global warming. "We're ending the era of foreign demonstration voyages that were promoted by Russia. Now it seems that reality is kicking in…
Reports on Rosneft Arctic Projects
On December 18, Member of Rosneft Board of Directors, special representative of President of the Russian Federation on international cooperation in the Arctic and Antarctic Artur Chilingarov made a report "Russia and Norway: Prospects for Cooperation in the Arctic" at the Fridtjof Nansen Institute. "Arctic development will help to melt the ice of distrust between Russia and the West," Chilingarov asserted. He cited Rosneft's joint projects as examples of successful Russian-Norwegian cooperation on the Arctic shelf. He emphasized, that the recent Pobeda (Victory) oil field discovery in the Kara Sea became a common victory, primarily, for the Russian and Norwegian specialists. The Universitetskaya well drilling results surpassed the boldest expectations.
Arctic Risk Management Study Released by DNV & FNI
A new study about crucial risk management issues relating to Arctic operations is released by DNV and the Fridtjof Nansen Institute (FNI). The study concludes that, in order to safely develop Arctic resources, there is a need for improved technology, oil spill preparedness and close cooperation between the authorities, industry and society. DNV’s CEO, Dr Henrik O. Madsen, presented the study entitled ‘Energy and the environment – Arctic resource development, risks and responsible management’ at the Offshore Northern Seas (ONS) Conference in Stavanger. Interest in the Arctic is growing rapidly, but there is no race for resources. The Arctic is more characterised by cooperation than by conflict.
