Deals
Oil Majors Seeking Norway Exit Warned Shutdown Costs May Remain
- Sellers of entire subsidiaries may have to cover shutdown cost
- New liability practice could create market uncertainty: lawyer
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As oil majors are considering exiting Norway, the government is warning them that they could still be on the hook for billion of dollars in costs to close down dried up oilfields if they aren’t careful to whom they sell.
For each future transaction, Norway’s Petroleum and Energy Ministry will assess whether to make companies liable for the close down costs of assets held by their former subsidiaries should their new owners not be able to handle the expenses, it said in a Nov. 8 letter to oil companies sent to the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association, which was obtained by Bloomberg.