EFL: The Norwegian government has intervened in an industrial dispute that had threatened to halt oil production. The risk that a week long strike would escalate with a lock-out on Monday spurred the government to act. The government had been very aware that failure to act would have caused a large chunk of supplies to be cut off from the world's oil market, oil prices would have spiked and Norway's reputation as a responsible player would have been damaged.
The oil industry is vital to Norway, accounting for almost half its exports and about a fifth of its economic output. Norway is the third largest oil exporter after Saudi Arabia and Russia and is set to become the second largest gas exporter after Russia. |