Major consequences For Statoil - 11 September, 2002

On Monday its 45 workers organized a strike action which may cause a virtual cessation of vessel traffic to and from Mongstad as well as the potential rerouting of oil tanker deliveries from Norwegian offshore fields.

Deliveries to Mongstad will be reduced, with Norsk Hydro ASA's North Sea Troll B and C oil platforms able to continue by pipeline for at most two weeks.

Although deliveries to the European continent won’t be affected by the strike and t it won’t create immediate problems for fuel and heating oil deliveries in Norway.

The strikers who work at the offsite facilities and the associated port were called out after the failure of pay talks between the Confederation of Vocational Unions (YS) and the Norwegian Oil Industry Association.