Norway strike likely to shut down 8% of oil, gas output from Oct 5: industry group

London — Norway's oil and gas production risks being cut by about 8%, or 330,000 b/d of oil equivalent, from the morning of Oct. 5 due to a strike over pay by an offshore managers' union, industry group Norwegian Oil & Gas said Oct. 2.

In a statement, Norwegian Oil & Gas, which handles pay negotiations on behalf of oil and gas operators, said six fields were at risk of shutdown for an unknown period due to the strike: Neptune Energy's Gjoa field, Wintershall Dea's Vega field, and four fields operated by state-controlled Equinor: Gina Krog, Gudrun, Kvitebjorn and Valemon.

Following successful pay talks with two other unions representing 85% of the offshore workforce, "the smallest union, Lederne, rejected the offer and opted to strike," Norwegian Oil & Gas said. "It has also demanded that the area covered by the collective pay settlement is expanded."

"The risk... exists that about 8% of total petroleum production from the Norwegian continental shelf could be lost through extending the strike," it said.

Separately, Equinor confirmed by email that output at Gudrun, Gina Krog, Kvitebjorn and Valemon was "likely to shut."

Equinor also said it expected to maintain production from the country's highest-producing oil field, Johan Sverdrup, despite the walk-out by 43 members of the union at that facility. "We continue to monitor the potential effects of the strike. At present we have normal production at Johan Sverdrup," an Equinor spokesman said.

Norway is Western Europe's largest oil and gas producer, with oil output of about 2 million b/d, or around two thirds of North Sea oil production.