Throughout the past 30 years Scandinavian Oil-Gas Magazine has covered the main events, and met with key players who helped shape the Norwegian oil & gas industry. During our anniversary year we will bring some glimpses from stories we have had through the years:

Vol. 1. No. 3 – 1973

Excerpt from interview with Eiler Holtermann, Secretary General of Norwegian Petroleum Institute, by Egil Lian:

‘Secretary General Eiler Holtermann opened with the following comment: “We are approaching 1974, a year when much that has been in the planning stages for some time will break out into full activity. Some time next spring oil from Ekofisk will come streaming ashore at Teeside, an historic moment. Even though the annual production of Ekofisk will represent only a fraction of the quantity of petroleum required by Europe, this new source of supply will be greeted with open arms by many nations that are hungry for oil. More may be soon to come, as for example the gas with which Ekofisk will begin supplying Germany the following year. All in all the finds on both the British and the Norwegian side are considerable.”

”Are things developing too rapidly?”

“I understand that peak activity has been predicted for that part of the industry which is related to oil?”

“Yes. There is a great need for oil rigs in the North Sea. Today there are 33 drilling rigs operating in the North Sea, 20 of them in the British sector, eight in the Norwegian, and the rest in Dansih and Dutch waters. We expect that 55 rigs will be in operation in 1975. Norwegian firms have eighteen drilling rigs on order – fifteen of them are the new H-3 rigs constructed by the Aker Group. Eleven of the eighteen rigs that are on order will be built at Norwegian yards. Norwegian industry has orders for equipment to be used in the North Sea, running into billions. The biggest units are two production rigs for the British sector, construction has already been started in Stavanger, and the combined cost will be 700 million kroner. When present orders have been delivered, the total value of Norwegian rigs will run over 4,000,000,000 kroner.”

Vol. 2. No. 3 - 1974

Allocation of Block 1974
‘There will be no formal allocation of blocks on the Norwegian sector of the continental shelf until after the vacation, says Mr. Müller of the Ministry of Industry, and this implies that it is not very realistic to hope for the new blocks until sometime in September. There has been a certain delay as a result of other important matters which we have been working on. It is quite clear that Statoil will participate in all allotments, but beyond this I can not say who will get the blocks. Thus far the Ministry.

Vol. 2. No. 3 - 1974

Norsk Hydro
‘Extract from speech by Director General Johan B. Holte in Polytechnical Association, Oslo, Tuesday March 26, 1974.:

A Magnificent Pioneer Work on the Fields in the North Sea
During the 1960’s our production of ammonia moved from the defensive to the offensive, but depended on an extensive import of oil products.

For this reason we began to plan our own oil refinery, and we jumped on the bandwagon as soon as the North Sea emerged as a potential oil area.

A joint company, Petronord, was formed, and this made Hydro co-owner of the Ekofisk reserves and later also of Frigg Field.

I will not here discuss the operations in the North Sea and Hydro’s position. Suffice it to say that an outstanding and impressive pioneer work is being carried out under the direction of Phillips Petroleum under difficult conditions out on the fields. As we know, the entire Norwegian nation will reap great economic advantages from these efforts. We also witness the manifestation of inventiveness and resourcefulness by Norwegian industry and Norwegian shipping, showing us that great forces and possibilities can be released in our country when they are permitted to tackle assignments that may give a reward.

To Hydro the oil activities are on their way to become the most important single area. Two thirds of our total investments this year will go to oil, and we anticipate that oil and gas in a few years will have doubled our turnover.
The organization of our division has been built out gradually and systematically since 1965, and we are now happy to have a very competent apparatus which also fully benefits from the broad support extended by Hydro’s total technical and administrative staff.’ We have worked for a long time with a big program of advanced projects, and have also entered into international participation in development of new technology that will be needed to solve the problems of the North Sea.’

Vol. 2 No 5 - 1974

Opening of CCB base
Sept. 2. 1974
Monday September 2 was a memorable day in Fjell Municipality outside Bergen, or, more precisely, at Ågotnes on Sotra. At this time CCB, the Coast Center Base Ltd, was officially opened by Undersecretary Reidar Hirsti in the presence of a number of invited guests.

The fact that this oil service base has materialized is primarily due to indomitable courage to press forward and unwavering faith in an idea which was conceived by P. B. Namtvedt in February of 1972.