GSI Seminar - Oil and Gas Subsidies in Norway

Event - 17 February 2012

Meeting Report: Subsidies or Incentives? Norway's Support for Upstream Oil and Gas (PDF - 258.68 KB)

OSLO - 16 February 2012 - The GSI convened a public seminar on subsidies to oil and gas production in Norway. The seminar sought a range of views on the theme “subsidies or incentives?”. Participants included the authors of a recent GSI study on production subsidies in Norway, Econ Pöyry, and representatives from the Norwegian Ministry of Environment, the Norwegian Oil Industry Association and environmental NGOs The Bellona Foundation and WWF-Norway.

Discussions began with an introduction to the GSI's work on producer subsidies: a series of reports which have identified various subsidies ranging from US$ 1.8 billion to US$ 10 billion per year. In a recent GSI study on Norway, more than 30 potential subsidies were identified, with 17 being analysed in detail and 9 of these amounting to US$ 4 billion in 2010. The study did not attempt to determine whether subsidies were good or bad though it did evaluate the impacts of three on the oil and gas industry. The GSI explained that an analysis of Norway had been chosen because it is highly transparent; a member of the Friends of Fossil-Fuel Subsidy Reform group of countries; a leader in other debates surrounding sustainable development; and a trusted partner for other countries around the world.

The panelists welcomed the study and the opportunity to discuss its findings. Discussions took place on various issues, including:

  • whether or not Norway's fiscal regime was optimal; 
  • what the right definition of 'subsidy' should be, especially where subsidies stimulate taxable activities which would otherwise not take place; 
  • the importance of increasing transparency about the cost of subsidies, to allow the public to engage with what is otherwise a highly technical issue;
  • the importance of engaging with the issue of subsidies world-wide; 

The seminar concluded with panelists asking whether there is a need for a public debate on this issue or it can be best resolved through cross-border discussions on issues of common interest. The GSI's Peter Wooders recommended that the issue could be usefully taken forward by assessing the impacts of Norway's most important subsidies against their policy objectives. He reminded panellists that Norway is looked to as an example of best practice and it has a unique opportunity to influence policy formation in other oil-producing countries around the world. Its stance on producer subsidies for fossil fuels could usefully stimulate change internationally, through forums such as the Friends of Fossil-Fuel Subsidy Reform, the UNFCCC, Rio+20 and the WTO.

Speakers

Session moderator:

  • Leiv Lunde, Director of the Fridtjof Nansen Institute 

Panelists:

Sectors: 
Fossil Fuels
News Item Type: 
Event
Related Countries: 
Norway
Related Organizations: 
Bellona
IISD
WWF