A planned strike by workers in Norway's energy sector next week could cut the country's gas production by 292,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, or 13 percent of output, the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association (NOG) employers' group said.yesterday.
According to Reuters calculations, NOG added that oil production could fall by 130,000 barrels per day, equivalent to about 6.5 percent of Norway's output.
The strike comes at a time when oil and gas prices remain high, with workers demanding higher wages to make up for rising inflation, with gas supplies particularly tight to Europe after Russia slashed exports.
Members of the Lederne union, which makes up about 15 percent of the country's offshore oil workers, voted Thursday to reject a proposed wage deal negotiated by company and union leaders.
As a result, they plan to strike three offshore fields starting on July 5 and add three more fields the next day, unless a solution is found.
The seventh field, Tyrihans, will have to be closed because its output is processed from the nearby Kristin field, which will be closed.
The parties have been discussing, but no progress has been made.
"Negotiations have taken place, but we have not seen a solution," a NOG spokesman told Reuters yesterday.
The Lederne union was not immediately reached for comment when contacted by Reuters.
Other oil and gas unions in Norway have accepted the wage deal and will not go on strike.
