The Labor Party held a digital mayor’s meeting on Tuesday evening. The tension was high, and mayors are calling for a faster pace in measures for business.
Less than 20 minutes ago
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Several Labor Party mayors in the south-west have issued a demand that the government must provide an answer on how to deal with the high electricity prices.
On Tuesday evening at 20:00, the Labor Party gathered all the party’s mayors for a digital meeting. At the top of the agenda was the electricity crisis. Last week electricity prices rose to record highswith big differences between north and south.
The meeting lasted around two hours.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland were present at the meeting, which was not only organized to talk about the electricity crisis.
Ap regularly has a digital collection for its mayors. Several mayors have told VG in advance that electricity prices should be the dominant topic, and that they would use tonight’s meeting to get answers.
–The power support lasts
– We had a good debate in the meeting, and some very good assurances. We have reason to believe that intensive work is being done to ensure that good arrangements are forthcoming. The question is whether this will happen quickly enough. There was a lot of talk about tempo-tempo, and especially for small and medium-sized companies. The question is whether it will come soon enough, so that business in Norway does not die while waiting for measures.
That’s what mayor Arnt Abrahamsen in Farsund says. He has previously told TV2 that he fears for industry in the municipality.
– There was, of course, concern for both private households, and unison concern for the business world, and those who do not have good fixed agreements. Filling rate and export are recurring themes.
Abrahamsen was satisfied with the meeting, but would have liked to have been given a time for solutions.
– I would have liked an even clearer answer. But it is a complex picture, and no quick fix. I must say I am satisfied with the meeting, he says.
He says that it seems that intensive work is being done to resolve the crisis and come up with arrangements.
– They are clear that the existing electricity support will last as long as the crisis lasts, says Abrahamsen.
He adds that it may look like stricter regimes are on the way when it comes to the degree of filling in the water reservoirs. Abrahamsen says he thinks support for the business world “will not come for a very long time”.
– Not new solutions
Haugesund mayor Arne-Christian Mohn says many of the mayors want a quick solution.
– There are many people who want a solution as soon as possible, which is something you like to do if you experience pressure from citizens and local business. Then nothing is worse than interest rates running wild, he says.
He says he was reassured that solutions will not be made “until it is sure to hit”.
– We can look to our neighbor to the far west. The United States has practically entered a state of stagnation. Inflation is uncontrollable. We’re not there now, but we can get there if you’re not careful. I’m glad things aren’t running wild. It is easy to withdraw the oil fund from the wallet, but the consequences can be worse.
–Gjesdal mayor Frode Fjeldsbø (Ap) says it was a long and good meeting.
– I feel that a collective body of mayors is satisfied with the support schemes that have been established for households, agriculture, housing associations, teams and associations. At the same time, we clearly express that we now need an arrangement for business, he writes in an SMS to VG.
Fjeldsbø feels that the Prime Minister and ministers listened to the mayors’ concerns.
– We were not presented with new solutions in the meeting tonight, but understand that concrete measures are being worked on.
County leader: – Not to live with
Recently wrote VG a case about butcher Jens Eide in Lillesandwho receive an electricity bill of over NOK 700,000, and who believe that the high prices create an unhealthy business environment.
This is also the opinion of several mayors who have gone against their own party. On Monday, Stavanger mayor Kari Nessa Nordtun and mayor Jan Oddvar went to Skisland in Kristiansand out to NRK with demands for measures that can help business.
– From us mayors in the most extreme price level, it will be a fairly unison message. It has now reached levels that most of us find impossible to live with, either in the short or long term, said county leader Frode Fjeldsbø in the Labor Party Rogaland to VG before the meeting.
Here you can see the electricity prices in the market (before the surcharge from the companies) right now. Note that the electricity subsidy scheme means that the real price for households is lower, because the state covers 80 per cent of the pure electricity price when the price is higher than 70 øre.
One of the reasons for the high prices is low levels in the water reservoirs. Norway is part of a common European energy market and has increased its cable capacity abroad. This has led to us exporting large quantities of Norwegian power to Europe. Most of it goes out from South-West Norway, there the water reservoirs are at a low level from before this summer.
–On 30 July, SV also came out with harsh criticism of the government’s handling of the electricity crisis, and joined in requirement for three immediate measures. The government said no to this until then.
SV, Rødt and Frp will cancel the Storting’s summer vacation so they can adopt new electricity measures before regular opening on 1 October. This will be decided at a meeting of the Presidency of the Storting on 8 August.
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