60 per cent of respondents expect revenues in offshore wind to increase. Hydrogen production, emission-free maritime solutions, carbon capture and storage, and offshore wind are seen as other industries with great market opportunities for Norwegian companies.
The survey by Menon Economics on behalf of the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association, Innovation Norway, GCE NODE, GCE Ocean Technology and NCE Energy Technology, was recently conducted among companies in the supplier industry. Measured in turnover, the survey covers 60 per cent of the industry.
“There will be demand for oil and gas in a future low carbon society, but demand will be heavily reduced. In general, Norwegian export will drop, whereas import of goods will increase. This calls for a restructuring of the Norwegian business sector,” says Sveinung Fjose, Partner at Menon Economics.
“It is hard to find money for restructuring and exploration of new market opportunities when our core market is performing badly. Still, I remain optimistic on behalf of the industry and its ability to change,” says Tom Fidjeland, CEO of GCE NODE.
He recalls how Norwegian companies responded to new opportunities in the oil and gas industry decades ago.
“In the 1970s, we had all bottom-fixed structures with all American drilling equipment. As the market for floating structures developed, Norwegian drilling companies took a 90 per cent global market share. If we fast-forward to the offshore wind sector today, we see a similar transitional phase from bottom-fixed structures to floating structures, which again presents great opportunities for Norwegian ocean-based technologies,” says Fidjeland.
Norwegian competence and technology from the oil and gas sector is believed to be essential in building a stronger renewable energy sector.
“Based on Norway’s unique experience, expertise and technology from suppliers to the oil and gas industry in particular, Norway can take a leading market position in new and emerging green industries,” says Anniken Hauglie, CEO of the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association.
Fjose rhetorically asks who is leading the green transition in the energy sector.
“The big Norwegian players in oil and gas have adopted a broader energy focus and included other forms of energy in their portfolios. These companies are expected to invest more in renewable energy than the utility sector from 2020 to 2023,” says Fjose.
