Oil production to be cut (Aftenposten)

The Government’s decision to cut Norwegian oil production was prompted by fears that a fall in oil prices could lead to investment in the Norwegian offshore oil industry drying up. The Government is ready to cut production by between 100,000 and 200,000 barrels of oil per day. Petroleum and Energy Minister Einar Steensnæs refused yesterday to give details of when Norway will implement its production cuts. Russia must first announce its figures and make a firm commitment. The Norwegian production cut also depends on Opec carrying out its pledge to cut 1.5 billion barrels a day from 1 January, and its ability to demonstrate that it can stick to its commitment.

Fears for sell-off of Statoil and Norsk Hydro (Dagsavisen)

The leader of the Labour Party’s parliamentary group, Jens Stoltenberg, is planning to derail the Government’s ambitious plans to privatize state-owned assets. Mr Stoltenberg is afraid that companies like Statoil and Norsk Hydro will fall into foreign hands if the Government reduces its stake to 34 per cent. The Government has argued strongly that a 34 per cent stake is sufficient to ensure that the companies remain headquartered in Norway. "Experience from Kreditkassen, in which the state owned a third of the shares, shows that in reality the state cannot oppose an acquisition even if it does hold a third of the shares, because the interests of private investors eventually become so pressing that the state is forced to sell," said Mr Stoltenberg.

Røkke plays for high stakes at Kværner (Dagsavisen)

If Kjell Inge Røkke succeeds in forcing through his own rescue plan for Kværner, he could end up controlling as much as 60 per cent of the beleaguered company. The rescue plan presented by Aker Maritime yesterday involves the merger of Aker Martime’s operative activities with Kværner Oil and Gas. According to Aker Maritime, the proposal represents a more robust financial solution, which should be more attractive to both existing and future shareholders and creditors. The company believes a merger will give the company a strong, Norwegian-based industrial future. As far as possible, Kværner would be kept in tact. Aker Maritime does not wish to break up or sell off parts of the company.

Kværner Crisis: Ball in Yukos Oil’s court (Dagens Næringsliv)

Chairman Harald Arnkværn is waiting desperately for Kjell Inge Røkke and Yukos Oil to come to a quick agreement on a solution to Kværner’s acute shortage of cash. On Friday it is Yukos Oil’s turn to speak out. If Kværner does not have NOK 250 million on the table by Monday, in addition to NOK 400 million of the remainder of the proceeds from its sale to Yukos Oil, the company will have to call in the receivers. Following the announcement of Kjell Inge Røkke and Aker Maritime’s rescue plan for Kværner on Thursday, uncertainty surrounding the company has become more intense. It is an uncertainty which chairman Harald Arnkværn could well do without.

DnB slammed over Storebrand affair (Dagbladet)

Den norske Bank’s handling of the Storebrand affair has been an embarrassment for the bank both in Norway and abroad, according to Tore Lindholdt, chief executive of the National Insurance Fund. It was at a meeting of DnB’s Corporate Assembly on Tuesday that Mr Lindholdt launched his attack. He also slammed what he described as DnB’s exaggeration of the advantages of merging the bank with the insurance company, Storebrand. This is the direct opposite of what the country’s leading politicians said at the height of the conflict this summer. After months spent trying to acquire Storebrand, the Finnish financial services company, Sampo, was forced to accept defeat in the face of DnB’s blocking tactics. While practically all of Storebrand’s shareholders accepted Sampo’s bid of NOK 75 per share, including the National Insurance Fund, DnB increased its stake in Storebrand in order to shut out the Finns.

EU lobbyists should be sponsored (Nationen)

According to Gunnar Bolstad of the European Movement in Norway, Norwegian domestic political issues are increasingly decided by the EU. And if we are to have any chance of influencing those decisions Norway must have an army of lobbyists in Brussels. He believes opponents of EU membership must stop believing that the Storting can influence EU directives. "The EEA Agreement is fundamentally undemocratic, and deliberately so. We have gone into this with our eyes open. Norwegian politicians must now realize that many of Norway’s domestic policies are in fact determined in Brussels," said Mr Bolstad.

Worth Noting

• Kværner’s senior union representative, Rolf Utgård, has sent a letter to Kjell Bjørndalen, leader of the Norwegian United Federation of Trade Unions, demanding support for the battle against Kjell Inge Røkke from the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions. (Verdens Gang)
• Retailers have launched a fierce attack on Norwegian food producers. According to Lars Haartveit, chief economist at the Federation of Norwegian Commercial and Service Enterprises (HSH), expensive and complicated production systems result in high food prices, while the Swedes have managed to adapt their operations. (Aftenposten)
• So far a majority of the Storting is backing the Competition Authority’s proposal which would put a stop to airline passengers earning bonus points on domestic flights in Norway. The frequent-flyer bonus schemes operated by SAS, Braathens and Widerøe look set to disappear. (Verdens Gang)
• Hopes of a cut in interest rates next year could be scuppered by excessively low estimates of income growth in the local government sector. The Government has based its calculations on a lower level of activity than the Norwegian Central Bank. (Dagens Næringsliv)
• Some patients have had difficulty getting emergency help. Others have had problems getting a referral to a specialist. Health Minister Dagfinn Høybråten has now promised to sort out the mess surrounding the new primary GP scheme. (Dagsavisen)
• Norwegian companies face a substantial jump in insurance premiums. Insurance experts are predicting increases of 20-25 per cent from the new year. At the same time insurance coverage will be reduced. (Dagens Næringsliv)
• The Office of the Auditor General is to investigate Norway’s fisheries management. The aim is to discover whether management of the country’s fisheries resources is sustainable, writes the newspaper, Bladet Vesterålen. (NTB)

Today’s comment from Dagsavisen

The struggle for industrial power at Kværner is one of the most ferocious ever fought on Norwegian soil. A week ahead of the extraordinary general meeting, and at a time when everyone thought Kværner was saved from the threat of bankruptcy by the Russia’s Yukos Oil, it became known that Kjell Inge Røkke was picking up shares in the company. Suddenly Mr Røkke was once again Kværner’s largest shareholder. With almost 25 per cent of the shares he has the muscle to send Kværner to the wall. If he wants to, that is. But of course that is not what Mr Røkke wants. Buying shares in a company and then forcing it into bankruptcy does not make any sense. He might just as well have set light to his cash. Mr Røkke’s goal is what it has always been – to make money out of what he does. His plan is the same as before. He wants to merge his own company, Aker Maritime, with Kværner in return for payment in Kværner shares. This scheme would give Mr Røkke control of Kværner and make him Norway’s uncrowned industrial king. The Russians would be pushed into the background, and Kværner would once again be in Norwegian hands. Bitter experience should have taught Kværner’s board and management that it is not wise to spend all your time and energy fighting your largest shareholder. Instead of seeing Mr Røkke’s latest initiative as a hostile gesture it would be sensible if Kværner’s shareholders, employees and creditors negotiated a solution together with Mr Røkke. Kværner will not be saved on the battlefield, but at the negotiating table.