Equinor postpones oil development in the Arctic

Equinor, Norway’s state oil company, and its partners announced that they will postpone oil development in the Wisting field Barents Sea which leaves 200 million tons of CO2 in the ground.

The Wisting oil field lies in the Barents Sea, about 310 km north of the Norwegian mainland and only about 50 kilometers south of the Arctic sea ice edge. The Wisting oil field is also dangerously near the island and nature reserve Bjørnøya (Bear Island) which is home to more than a million seabirds, who nest on the steep cliffs on the southwest tip of Bear Island. Any offshore oil exploration, drilling and production threaten wildlife and their habitats, especially in this area.

The lack of infrastructure here means that it can take days or weeks to respond to a spill and render clean-up ineffective. Local environments can be ruined for decades, effectively wiping out local populations of certain species and affecting local people’s livelihoods and food security.

Equinor stated that inflation and rising supply costs related to the energy markets and the war in Ukraine are to blame for the decision to postpone. A new decision will be taken in 2026.

This is a major win for the environmental movement, both in Norway and internationally. The WWF Arctic Programme and WWF-Norway along with many other environmental organizations have campaigned against the development of Wisting project and a massive opposition from the public has built up over the past months.

Karoline Andaur, General Secretary, WWF-Norway said:

“We note that Equinor justifies the postponement with inflation and higher costs, but they must have noticed the enormous resistance and criticism they have received in recent months. We cannot tolerate more oil and gas if we are to reach our climate goals. The Wisting project is an economic and ecological disaster that has now fortunately been postponed.”

Elena Tracy, Senior Advisor, Sustainable Development, WWF Arctic Programme said:

“Past records show that it is irresponsible to drill for oil and gas in the sensitive Arctic environment. Arctic spills are hard to clean up, and they are too devastating for nature and people. WWF advocates against new exploration and development of new fossil fuel reserves, and in particular against oil production in the Arctic.”

For further information:

Andrea Norgren | Sr. Manager Communications, Arctic Programme | andrea.norgren@wwf.se