Norwegian offshore oilfield workers decide to strike

Norway's offshore oilfield workers decided on Tuesday to go on strike on Tuesday, threatening to further curtail oil and gas output amid high oil and gas prices and European gas supplies severely strained by Russia's export cuts. Reuters reported on the 5th that Norwegian workers went on strike to demand higher wages and subsidies for increasingly high fares. Audun Ingvartsen, leader of the Norwegian oil union Lederne, said in an interview that the strike action had already begun. The Norwegian government has previously said it is "closely" monitoring developments and may intervene if unexpected situations arise. Equinor said it would cut oil and gas output by 89,000 bpd on Tuesday, with natural gas accounting for 27,500 bpd. The Norwegian Oil and Gas Association (NOG) has just warned on July 3 that natural gas output in Norway will fall by a further 292,000 barrels per day from Wednesday, equivalent to 13% of the country's overall output. According to Reuters calculations, Norwegian oil output could fall by 130,000 bpd from Wednesday, equivalent to 6.5% of Norway's overall output. Unions are expected to expand strike action on Saturday, which could shut down nearly a quarter of Norway's natural gas output and 15 percent of its oil output.