50 fantastic years Scaring off students Pundit ponders A JOURNAL FROM THE NORWEGIAN PETROLEUM DIRECTORATE NO 1 - 2015 1-2015 NORWEGIAN CONTINENTAL SHELF | 1 CONTENTS LEADER NORWEGIAN CONTINENTAL SHELF Learn from the past 1 2 3 4 History is full of far-sighted security. While this North Sea field recent years to recruit more engi- 6 7 A JOURNAL FROM THE people, and that holds true for alone will provide thousands of neers and geoscientists. 5 9 NORWEGIAN PETROLEUM Norway’s oil saga as well. We jobs for several decades to come, The level of activity on the should learn from them, particu- it represents an exception and NCS is pretty certain to remain 8 DIRECTORATE 10 larly when many observers are more such giant finds are fairly high for the next two decades. So NO 1 - 2015 talking down the Norwegian oil unlikely. we will need more good brains to and gas sector. Many discoveries still lack a replace those of today’s person- This issue gives space to plan for development and opera- nel who are now in their 50s. FRONT COVER VOLUME 12- 1 several oil pioneers who deserve tion (PDO), but only a few are All the cuts mean that many Key figures from the history of oil city Stavanger. the nation’s thanks. In the years genuinely time-critical – such people are chasing each new job RESPONSIBLE PUBLISHER Former law-of-the-sea minister Jens Evensen (1), before and after the first offshore as “Trestakk” and “Maria” in the which comes on the market. We Norwegian Petroleum Directorate former Statoil CEOs Arve Johnsen (2), Harald Norvik licensing round in 1965, they laid Norwegian Sea. have advertised four vacancies, P O Box 600 (9) and Helge Lund (10), first Norwegian petroleum the basis for today’s activity on A lot of these finds, particu- and received around 230 applica- NO-4003 Stavanger and energy minister Bjartmar Gjerde (3), former the NCS. larly in the North Sea, will be tions. Norway mayor Arne Rettedal (7), and former top NPD staffers They were visionary, and they developed with subsea solutions But what worries us is long- Telephone: +47 51 87 60 00 Fredrik Hagemann (8), Gunnar Berge (5) and Farouk term recruitment to the industry. E-mail: [email protected] Al-Kasim (6) – while 19th century novelist Alexander The whole nation is still benefiting from the And the oil companies do not Kielland (4) looms in the background. EDITORIAL TEAM appear to have learnt anything 6 Photo: Sverre Christian Jarild (Illustration: Roar Hagen) Bjørn Rasen, editor legal framework and the organisation shaped from the last downturn. They Astri Sivertsen, journalist at that time. should take the time to read the Bente Bergøy, journalist comments from Norway’s oil pio- Past achievers............................................................................................................... 4 Eldbjørg Vaage Melberg, neers in this issue. communications adviser thought and acted for the com- tied back to existing facilities. With law shall the land be built............................................................................. 6 Rolf E Gooderham, English editor munity. The whole nation is still The level of activity is declin- In at the start.............................................................................................................. 11 benefiting from the legal frame- ing, and the number of explora- PRODUCTION work and the organisation shaped tion wells drilled this year is likely Found his field......................................................................................................... 14 Arne Bjørøen - graphic production at that time. to be below the 2014 figure of 56. First to find................................................................................................................... 16 Printer: Gunnarshaug Trykkeri AS NOK 200-250 billion is due to We are assuredly experiencing Paper: Arctic Volume 200/130 g be invested annually on the NCS a crisis where many people have Dry debut.................................................................................................................. 17 Print run Norwegian: 10 500 over coming years. That is on a lost their jobs. Those who have Drawing lessons......................................................................................................... 18 Print run English: 1 800 par with a few years back, when failed to find new employment Celebrating wise choices....................................................................................... 21 LAYOUT all the indicators seemed to point are naturally suffering personally Klas Jønsson, art director sky-high. We in the NPD were and in their pocket. Work for generations.............................................................................................. 22 concerned at an early stage that But these conditions are likely SUBSCRIPTIONS a high level of activity would put to be transitory. So it is depress- The interview: Watcher in the wings.................................................................. 24 www.npd.no.magazine pressure on prices – and boost ing to see that the cuts being Free of charge Doubts return over oil jobs................................................................................... 30 costs. made by the companies en masse A move closer to chess in schools........................................................................33 NORWEGIAN CONTINENTAL Eight development projects are once again frightening young NPD profile: Passionate communicator ............................................................34 SHELF are currently under way on the people away. The decline in on the web: www.npd.no NCS. We are still seeing great applications to study petroleum- Facts for the future – or scaremongering?....................................................... 36 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER interest by the industry in new related subjects at university is Rockshot: Raining ash..............................................................................................39 www.twitter/oljedir licences, and the long-term activ- dramatic. ity picture looks good. That makes it reasonable Facts sited..................................................................................................................... 40 In that perspective, it is to ask whether the oil compa- Oil Facts........................................................................................................................ 40 important that Johan Sverdrup nies have thought this through Bente Nyland does not create a false sense of properly, given the struggle over director general 2 | NORWEGIAN CONTINENTAL SHELF 1-2015 1-2015 NORWEGIAN CONTINENTAL SHELF | 3 Past achievers | Bjørn Rasen and Roar Hagen (illustration) ify which parts of the continental shelf belonged to Norway – a subject cov- A group of young Norwegian civil ered by lawyer Carl August Fleischer. servants are wreathed in satisfied Two of the first officials working smiles on 13 April 1965. The govern- on oil in the Ministry of Industry’s min- ment’s official gazette has invited the ing office, Nils B Gulnes and Fredrik oil companies to apply in the country’s Hagemann, also explain how they had first offshore licensing round. great freedom of action. An extensive and groundbreaking Virtually without political interfer- effort to bring Norway into the oil age ence, they and their colleagues quickly is over. What matter, then, that a light put in place the legislation and organ- rain is falling in Oslo and the tempera- ised the new activity. ture is only 3-4°C. That was at a time when the film At the same time, in a sunnier version of The Sound of Music was a Oil pioneers in government and civil service during the 1960s, London, four other young men are big hit across Norway – its audience depicted by Roar Hagen. This cartoon occupies a central place in the recording the song Help! at the Abbey record of 681 000 in Oslo remains Norwegian Petroleum Museum’s new exhibition. Road studio – another event which unbeaten. De statlige oljepionerenehelped to shape history. This issue also carries an interview Prime minister Einar the initial licensing round. Fifty years have passed since that with pundit Hans Henrik Ramm, who Gerhardsen (1) and his govern- Conservative politician Sverre first round on the NCS, and production has kept tabs on the Norwegian oil ment declared Norwegian sov- Walter Rostoft (6) became Det startet på verst tenkeligeis set måte. to last I 1958at least slo another Norges 50. geologisk The adventure since the 1970s. ereignty over natural resources industry minister after the 1965 undersøkelse fast at det ikkeBeatles var oljeare gone,og gass but på nobody norsk wouldkontinental- And, not least, newspaper cartoon- on the NCS in 1963. Key figures general election. be surprised if their music is still being behind this decree were Jens The following year, Gulnes 2 6 sokkel. Derfor var det mange som lurte da amerikanske Phillips ist Roar Hagen contributes his take on played as the giant Ekofisk and Johan the industry – in words and images – Evensen (2) at the foreign acquired two new colleagues 5 Petroleum i 1962 ba om å få enerett til alle forekomstene på norsk 1 9 Sverdrup fields near their end. in his own distinctive way. ministry and his colleagues – geologist Fredrik Hagemann 8 sokkel mot å bruke en million dollar på seismiske undersøkelser. Leif Terje Løddesøl (3) and Carl (7) and engineer Olav K 7 Norwegian Continental Shelf has Hagen’s cartoons have a key place August Fleischer (4). Christiansen. Farouk Al-Kasim 4 3 Som svar