The Norwegian government on Tuesday night announced an intervention to put an end to the strike of the oil and gas industry due to concerns that this strike could affect the supply of energy supply to Europe at a time when Europe is already in shortage of sanctions imposed on Russia.
The government announced that it plans to force the trade union “Loderne” and the employer organization “NORSK OLJE OLJE OG GASS” to reach an agreement on the termination of the strike.
Both sides announced that they would end the strike at the request of Minister of Employment Marta Mjas Persen to resume work as soon as possible.
“It is irresponsible to stop the gas from getting as much as this strike in the coming days,” the minister said.
“This escalation is critical in the current situation, both from the point of view of the energy crisis and the geopolitical situation we are facing in the war in Europe,” Persen said.
In its statement, the government added that Norway had to do its utmost to maintain energy security in Europe and European solidarity against Russia’s war.
Following the failed talks on increasing employee salaries, 74 employees started a strike on three Norwegian natural gas and oil platforms. Due to the strike, Equinor, the energy company, stopped mining work on Gudruns, South Osberg and East Easter.
Another 117 employees were expected to join the strike on Wednesday, but even a wider strike would take place on Saturday.
The Norwegian Oil and Gas Association announced on Tuesday that the country’s natural gas export could shrink by almost 60%by Saturday.
“In principle, both sides are responsible for finding a solution in such cases. However, when the conflict can have such great social consequences for Europe as a whole, I have no other way out to intervene,” Persen said.
European countries that have so far been largely dependent on Russian energy imports are looking for new suppliers in Ukraine after the Russian invasion. Many are counting on the fact that this gap will help fill in Norwegian natural gas and oil exports.
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