Røkke demands summit (Aftenposten/Saturday)

A summit meeting between Kværner’s board of directors, the banks and the beleaguered company’s major shareholders was the demand made by Kjell Inge Røkke when he and Kværner chairman Harald Arnkværn met yesterday with Kværner’s bankers. Mr Røkke thinks it is incredible that Kværner’s board is backing a rescue plan based on secret Russian investors. "This is Norway’s first ‘blind date’. You don’t even know the sex of the person you are going to meet," commented Mr Røkke.

Kværner saved at the last minute – again (NTB)

In the early hours of Monday morning, Kværner’s board succeeded is scraping together enough cash to keep the company afloat until Thursday’s extraordinary general meeting. "At least, that is how it seems," said Kværner spokeswoman, Marit Ytreeide to NTB on Monday morning. At that point the board had been battling all night to keep its head above water. In a series of fax and e-mail messages they had asked Kværner’s creditors for mercy and their customers for a down-payment after it had become clear earlier in the evening that the plan presented by Kjell Inge Røkke and Aker Maritime was unacceptable. This means that Kværner’s board will put its original rescue plan to the general meeting on Thursday – the plan which to a large extent depends on the Russian oil company, Yukos Oil. It also means that Kværner’s largest shareholder, Kjell Inge Røkke, will in all likelihood vote against the plan.

Bitter clash of personalities could destroy Kværner (Dagbladet)

Kjell Inge Røkke feels stabbed in the back by Kværner chief executive Kristian Siem. Mr Røkke believes Mr Siem would rather see Kværner go down than allow him on board. The result could be that 35,000 people lose their jobs. Sources close to both men have told Dagbladet that Kristian Siem is systematically working against the controversial investor’s proposals for a solution to the crisis. Mr Siem rejects categorically that personal differences are getting in the way of a solution for Kværner.

Bondevik shuns Labour invitation (Dagbladet/Saturday)

Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik has shunned the Labour Party’s sudden invitation to cooperate over the budget. After weeks of high drama in the Storting over the budget proposal, the Labour Party’s parliamentary leader, Jens Stoltenberg, publicly announced that he was willing to enter into negotiations with the Government. "It is striking that Mr Stoltenberg has made this announcement now – long after the Storting’s Finance Committee has made its recommendation. Jens Stoltenberg’s proposal would mean that we would have to start the entire budget process over again, and I do not see that as something we can do right now," said Mr Bondevik.

Vote of confidence needed after just 40 days (NTB)

A vote of confidence may be needed to secure a parliamentary majority for the Government’s budget proposal, following the breakdown of negotiations with the Progress Party. The Finance Committee’s recommendation does not contain majority support for any budget proposal, and the Government may be forced to take a tough line at the end of the finance debate on Wednesday evening. Late last week Prime Minister Bondevik rejected an invitation from the Labour Party to cooperate with them over the budget. According to Gunnar Husan, the PM’s spokesman, there has been no contact with the Progress party during the weekend aimed at finding a last minute agreement on the budget. A call for a vote of confidence is the strongest measure open to a government to force its will on the Storting. If no one allows themselves to be forced, the Government could fall.

Little room for manoeuvre for Progress Party (Vårt Land/Saturday)

The other parties in the Storting cannot chop and change the Government’s budget at will. "Discussion in the parliamentary committees is not worth a bean," said John Alvheim, deputy chairman of the Progress Party. After the Storting has approved the general budget framework next week, the Government can relax. It is not as easy to ride roughshod over the budget as it may look. Mr Alvheim does not think the Progress Party will have made a stronger imprint on the budget after the committees have had their say. Apart from direct and indirect taxes all areas are open for change when the budget is finally brought up for discussion in the various committees next week.

Jagland’s days numbered (Dagbladet/Sunday)

The Labour Party may experience a dramatic and bitter power struggle in the run-up to next year’s annual conference. Dagbladet has learned that leading party officials plan to work systematically to ensure that Jens Stoltenberg wins that power struggle and is elected party chairman at the annual conference in November 2002. For several weeks Dagbladet has been interviewing a number of key Labour politicians to gather background information about the party’s problems and the challenges posed by this autumn’s election disaster. One main conclusion is that the party’s leading figures believe the division of leadership between Thorbjørn Jagland and Jens Stoltenberg does not work very well – at all.

LO slams Bondevik (Dagsavisen)

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) has attacked the Government for its about face on a dispute over pensions which has been brought before the EFTA Court. The conflict is about wage agreements, competition rules and NOK 100 billion in crisp, new pension money. "This is important for us. It’s about the status our wage agreements should have," said LO president Gerd-Liv Valla. A surprising aspect of the case is that the EU supports the LO’s interpretation of the EU/EEA rules, while the Norwegian government does not.

Socialist Left Party from election high to hangover (Dagbladet/Saturday)

This year it will be 40 years since a group of discontented Labour politicians broke away from the party and founded the Socialist People’s Party (SF) after a lengthy period of foreign policy disagreement. The SF’s successor, the Socialist Left Party, is still split on foreign policy. This weekend leading Socialist Left Party officials gather in Oslo for the party’s national committee meeting. The party leadership is not happy with the way things have gone since its election success this autumn. Negative publicity has dogged the Socialist Left Party in the past two months.

Easier to get work in Norway (NTB/Saturday)

From the new year it will be easier for skilled workers and specialists from countries outside the EEA to get work in Norway. At Friday’s Council of State meeting, the Government approved changes to the immigration rules. Among the changes are new visa regulations for job seekers who are specialists, and an annual quota for such job seekers. This is intended to ensure faster and simpler processing of applications.

Worth noting

• Kjell Inge Røkke’s ultimatum to Kværner’s board on Saturday was NOK 3.6 billion for Aker Maritime and control of Kværner. (Dagens Næringsliv)
• John Alvheim, chairman of the Storting’s Social Affairs Committee, has said that Norway’s drug problem will only go on increasing, and that a separate commission should be set up to investigate what can be done. (Dagsavisen/Saturday)
• Kjell Inge Røkke has said he will share more of his wealth with others. He now admits that all the luxury he has surrounded himself with has had a negative effect on his abilities as a businessman. He also says he understands the criticism of his luxury yacht. (Dagbladet/Saturday)
• Several of Kværner’s subsidiaries could survive if the parent company goes bankrupt. The oil and gas business, which Kjell Inge Røkke wants to merge with his own Aker Maritime, is among those with the brightest future. (Dagens Næringsliv/Saturday)
• Finance Minister Per-Kristian Foss wants to cut the state’s shareholding in Den norske Bank (DnB) to a third within the year, and is open for a further watering down of its stake in future mergers. A reduction beyond 33 per cent has not been discussed by the coalition partners. (Dagens Næringsliv/Saturday)
• The Christian Democratic Party has gained hundreds of Muslim members in connection with this autumn’s general election. The Muslims support the Christian Democrats’ family policies and views on moral issues. (Verdens Gang/Saturday)
• A two-month postponement did not help. The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) is still struggling with internal dissent over plans for new strike legislation. The LO could crack wide open when the organization sits down to write its response to the Government’s consultation paper on the issue. (Aftenposten/Sunday)
• Rising fears of burglary and violent crime have led to a boom for security companies. This year we will buy security services and alarms to the tune of almost NOK 7 billion. (Nationen/Saturday)
• The shooting of seals and cormorants, a ban on fishing for cod under 30cm and a total ban on lobster fishing for three to five years. This is the recipe scientists have come up with for saving the fish in the Oslo Fjord. (Aftenposten/Sunday)
• TFDS and OVDS, the shipping lines which operate the Norwegian Coastal Voyage, could be merged from next summer. The new shipping line will have a borrowing requirement of NOK 3-4 billion. This increases the likelihood that the ‘coastal highway’ will have to take a detour to the Oslo Stock Exchange. (Dagens Næringsliv/Saturday)

Today’s comment from Dagens Næringsliv

It is clear that Victor D. Norman, the free-thinking and free-speaking professor and vice-chancellor of the Norwegian School of Economics and Business, feels slightly hemmed in by his new role as Labour and Government Administration Minister. Indeed, on his first day in the job he tripped up with a forthright comment on SAS’s plans to take over Braathens – a case he would have to make a decision on after the Competition Authority had announced its recommendation. Mr Norman wants an end to ministers being muzzled in this way, so he is proposing the creation of politically independent complaints bodies. It is a good idea. Not only because it would enable ministers to speak their mind, but also because it would prevent politicians from overruling decisions on business development. Can we expect an initiative on this soon?