Investments in Norway’s oil and gas sector are set to hit a record high this year, led by increased investments in operating fields, Statistics Norway said on Tuesday in its latest survey of companies’ investment plans.
The quarterly survey of investment plans showed that total investments in oil and gas activity in Norway in 2025, including pipeline transportation, are estimated at $26.6 billion (269 billion Norwegian crowns), up by 6% compared to the estimates in the previous quarter.
“The upward adjustment for 2025 is to a large extent driven by higher estimates within the category fields on stream,” the statistics office said.
However, investments are expected to peak this year and begin to decline moderately from 2026 onwards. The estimate for 2026 is now at $20.5 billion (207 billion crowns), down by 4.3% from the expected 2025 investment level, according to the statistics office.
Investments in 2023 and 2024 jumped, due to Norway’s oil tax package from 2020 incentivizing operators to submit a plan for development and operation (PDO) for several new fields, Statistics Norway noted.
Inflation and rising supply chain costs have also boosted the value of the investments in the past two years.
Considering that “very few new developments have occurred since 2022”, it is not surprising that a moderate decline in investments in field development is indicated this year. But this decline in investment in field development is being offset by expectations of a very high planned investment activity in fields on stream, the statistics office said.
Further exploration efforts and new discoveries would be crucial to slowing the expected decline in Norway’s oil and gas production in the 2030s, the authorities of Western Europe’s largest oil and gas producer have said in recent years.
Production from the Norwegian Continental Shelf is expected to decline gradually in the coming years, the Norwegian Offshore Directorate said in April in its annual report.
“However, the level of this decline will depend on the volume of new resources discovered and how much of the discovered resources are developed and actually come on stream,” the regulator said.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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