“As the first production plant for LNG in Europe and in Arctic areas, Snøhvit has taken a new and central position for Statoil in the European gas supply picture,” says chief executive Helge Lund.
”At the same time the plant at Melkøya is a great industrial adventure,” underlined Lund at an industrial seminar in Hammerfest on Friday.
The seminar was central in the celebration of Snøhvit’s first three years of operation, that started by inspections at Melkøya on Thursday and finished by a party for the city of Hammerfest on Saturday night.
Securing a foothold Lund praised the positive contributions from national and local politicians: “They established the conditions for the Snøhvit development, and there has been a strong and good cooperation between the local community and Statoil,” he stated.
“With LNG deliveries from Snøhvit, Statoil on its side has added an important and strategic contribution to its gas value chain,” continued Lund.
Snøhvit has a competitive position both in the European and the US gas market, thanks to its proximity to these markets compared with other LNG.
Creating opportunities With regard to resources the Arctic areas offer large technological and environmental challenges.
The solutions found for Snøhvit will provide opportunities in future projects such as Goliat, Sthokman, Alaska and new areas in the Barents Sea.
Other speakers at the seminar were state secretary Robin Kåss, Hammerfest mayor Alf E Jakobsen, ambassador and head of the delegation to the European Union to Norway Janos Herman, executive vice president Øystein Michelsen, Total’s head of Northern Europe Patrice de Viviès, chairman of the Norwegian fishermen’s Association Reidar Nilsen and author Alf R Jakobsen.
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Source: statoil, June 7, 2010;