Norway puts hold on deepwater drilling in new licensing round

Norway will not permit any drilling in deepwater areas in its upcoming 21st licensing round until more is known about the Deepwater Horizon accident.

The Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Mr. Terje Riis-Johansen, yesterday emphasized the need for more knowledge about the accident before awarding new areas for deepwater exploration in the 21st licensing round.

"We are moving ahead with the 21st licensing round. We will have the accident in the Gulf of Mexico in mind going forward," said the Minister. "There will be no drilling on any licenses on deep waters coming out of the 21st round before we have sufficient knowledge of this accident, including possible implications for our regulation. In addition to that, before awarding licenses in the 21th round, I will ensure I have deeper knowledge about the accident. The precautionary principle combined with a predictable framework, have to be the foundation for our petroleum politics."