– Incredible

– That the government only now understands that it has to investigate price formation and the electricity market after 15 months of electricity crisis is completely unimaginable. The government has used commissions and committees as an excuse to do nothing since the beginning of the crisis. Now I fear the new committee will go through another year of investigations without anything happening, says Marius Arion Nilsen, who sits on the energy committee in the Storting for the Progress Party.

Marius Arion Nilsen reacts with incredulity to Dagbladet’s news last week that the government has postponed its electricity price inquiry until the Energy Commission report arrives on February 1.

The investigation takes place following an agreement between the government parties, Ap and Sp, and SV last autumn. SV believes that the investigation should have already been launched.

Nilsen is supported by Sofie Marhaug, who sits on the same committee for Rødt.

– I was very worried when I saw him at the weekend Aasland says one shouldn’t be looking at short-term price mechanisms. Then, in fact, a new energy commission is set up, without wanting to look at the formation of prices. The only thing that can help companies and households in the midst of a crisis is to lower the price compared to what it actually costs to produce energy in Norway. Now we pay as if it were the electricity produced by the European gas we buy, says Marhaug, and continues:

– The government itself chose to train the price observation work, they could have started this work a long time ago. If now they don’t even include in the mandate that the price should be regulated in the short term in Norway, the whole investigation is useless, says Rødt’s politician.

Vedum promised last year

When Finance Minister and PS leader Trygve Slagsvold Vedum announced that the energy commission would arrive in January last yearhe just stressed that the commission should look into prices and ensure that Norway again gets the lowest energy prices in Europe.

– They need to look at the long-term view of the electricity situation, see what kind of leeway we have after the government with the Conservative Party and FRP has locked Norway into foreign deals and cables that we don’t want. The energy committee will help ensure low and stable electricity prices in Norway for several years, Vedum told Dagbladet a year ago.

But it is now clear that the award will only be reviewed a year after Vedum’s pledge – and by an entirely new commission.

– Vedum locked himself inside

Støre: – Evaluate everything

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre spoke at the Labor Party central council on Monday. There he said the government is doing everything possible to resolve the price crisis. At the same time, he issued a warning.

– We are open to consider all solutions that can stabilize and lower prices. But we will never advocate short-term solutions, which could get us into trouble in the future or which could threaten security of supply. We have to find solutions in cooperation with our Nordic and European neighbours, Støre said in his speech.

Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland told Dagbladet before Christmas that the government was ready to introduce swift measures to control the price if it could find them.

So far the government has not found a solution.

Asking Norway to challenge the EU

Both the Progress Party and Rødt believe the government should step forward and challenge the EU over Norway’s right to self-government. Marius Arion Nilsen refers to the measures taken in EU countries to remedy the energy price crisis.

– The Labor Party appears to be completely loyal to the EU and does not dare to challenge or explore Norway’s leeway. When we see what measures European countries and the EU have introduced, many measures are at best an extension of the rules there. Alternatively, the measures that Germany and France have introduced are an expression of a strategy in which they give, for example, in the rules and rather let themselves be taken later and have to adjust the measures. But then the measures worked for at least a year or two. The Norwegian government must also have the courage to do this, says Nilsen, and is supported by Marhaug:

– Norway is now completely behind other European countries that have been regulating the market for a long time. In reality, France has a price ceiling for electricity, which they have implemented because they have large state ownership. Norway has it too. The fact that we can’t adjust the price is completely insane and a total failure. Norway is now more power liberal than the EU itself, says Rødt-Marhaug, who believes Norway must now explore the space for action.

– We don’t know what the purpose is until we try. The situation is extraordinary and Norway is overrun. If it turns out that the EU opposes price regulation in Norway, it is a good argument to exclude energy policy from the EEA agreement. But we can’t know until we try, it takes political will and energy.