photo William Stoichevski

Carbon heavweight Norway will be skipped over when next year’s round of European Union trading in carbon-dioxide emissions quotas gets underway on Jan. 1, 2008, but could be along later next year.

Successive governments in Norway have failed to make arrangements as a member of the non-EU tarding block, the European Economic Area. Norway’s inclusion is being negotiated, but talks are “demanding”, the country’s EU ambassador, Oda Helen Sletnes told newspaper Aftenposten from Brussels.

The EEA countries meet in September, but Sletnes “did not reckon” a deal would be ready for approval by committee. After any deal, Norway’s tradeable carbon-emitting capacity must be measured, approved and controlled.

“While (policy-makers) are making regulations, we would at least like to be part of the conversation,” Shell executive VP for renewables, was quoted in Scandinavian Oil-Gas Magazine as saying.

Norway commands a vast EU carbon storage project at the Statoil-run Sleipner field, but likewise belches out more carbon per capita than any Western European country due to flaring, exhaust and turbine use offshore. EU countries must unanimously agree Norway’s entry into trading, and they’re seen as wary of the Nordic country’s ability to affect prices.

ws@scandoil.com