POLITICS The Norwegian Government Proposes a NOK 19 Billion Increase in Defense Spending With the proposed increase, the Norwegian defense budget for 2025 will total NOK 110 billion. A main priority is to make the current defense structure work with more ammunition, better preparedness, and more people. The proposed budget also includes increased investments in material, property and construction.
Arne O. Holm says An Unworthy Game Exploiting the World's Refugees Comment: Extreme right parties are on the rise across central parts of Europe. Most recently in Austria. What are the chances for the rest of Europe to hold off? And what happens when traditional democratic parties face the extreme on their home court?
Arne O. Holm says The Green Pipe Dreams Torn Asunder by an Arctic Storm Comment: The Swedish battery company Northvolt is heading toward bankruptcy. In that case, it would be a gigantic setback for the European and Arctic investment in the green shift. In addition, it would be the most expensive adult education of all time.
Science / 08.10.2024 Canadian Arctic and Norwegian Sea New Emission Control Areas The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has adopted major amendments…
BUSINESS / 08.10.2024 World Ocean Council Founder and CEO to Step Down After 15 Years The World Ocean Council (WOC) has announced that its founder and CEO, Paul…
SCIENCE / 07.10.2024 Alaska Peregrine Falcon Numbers Drop Again In 1973, only 12 pairs of peregrine falcons perched at nest sites over a…
SCIENCE / 07.10.2024 Thawing Permafrost May Release Mercury in The Yukon River A new study is warning about significant stores of mercury that could be…
POLITICS Svalbard in the National Budget: Electricity Support, Education and Research The Norwegian government wants to give Longyearbyen NOK 100 million in electricity support in 2025. This will probably not be enough to prevent increased energy fees, says the community council chair. However, the proposed NOK 184 million for the University Center in Svalbard will contribute to the resumption of normal activity.
Newsletter Is the Green Shift Over Before It Begun? Newsletter: It looks like the green shift in the North crashed before it had a chance to take off. We bring you budget news for the Norwegian defense and Svalbard, and we are following the quota crisis and Russia's shadow fleet closely. Here is the latest news from the North.
POLITICS Norway Implements New Sanctions, But Russian LNG Vessels Still Allowed to Stop at Honningsvåg Norway passed a new round of sanctions targeting Russia’s energy sector, including the import and transshipment of liquefied natural gas. But the latest measures do not address the continued use of Norwegian port facilities by LNG carriers in service of Russia.
BUSINESS Wison Modules En Route to Arctic LNG Project In Defiance of Sanctions A Chinese-manufactured power plant for a sanctioned Russian LNG project continues to…
BUSINESS Inside the Elaborate Scheme to Transport a Chinese Power Plant to Russia’s Arctic Undetected In a desperate attempt to salvage Russia’s largest liquefied natural gas project a…
POLITICS ‘Shadow Fleet’ LNG Carrier Travels Up Norwegian Coast After Failed Attempt to Deliver Sanctioned Cargo Six weeks after a sanctioned load of liquefied natural gas traveled down the…
BUSINESS Novatek Denies Involvement With Arctic ‘Shadow Fleet’, Official Records Suggest Otherwise Russia's largest natural gas producers Novatek, issued a forceful statement that it…
BUSINESS Plans to Create Hydrogen Solutions in Narvik to Cut Maritime Emissions Likely Put On Hold The company TECO 2030 is NOK 400 million away from initiating a full-scale production of hydrogen-based fuel cells in Narvik, Northern Norway. CEO Tore Enger says the money market in Norway is "dry" for both public and private capital. He is turning his gaze toward the US and India.
Op-ed Rethinking Hybrid War and the West’s Security Interests Debate: "When a failure at US cybersecurity company, CrowdStrike, brought outages to global businesses, hospitals, airlines, and communications networks, the consequences went far beyond inconvenient flight delays", says Anita Parlow.
BUSINESS Wison Modules En Route to Arctic LNG Project In Defiance of Sanctions A Chinese-manufactured power plant for a sanctioned Russian LNG project continues to inch closer to the Arctic. Three heavy lift vessels have reached the northern Pacific and are days from passing through the Bering Strait.
Norway Implements New Sanctions, But Russian LNG Vessels Still Allowed to Stop at Honningsvåg Oct 08 2024 - 08:49
Plans to Create Hydrogen Solutions in Narvik to Cut Maritime Emissions Likely Put On Hold Oct 09 2024 - 15:59
POLITICS Inhabitants of Russian Settlements to Be Registered in the Population Register of Svalbard For the first time, people living in the Russian settlements Barentsburg and Pyramiden will now be entered into the population register of Svalbard. The registration, carried out by the Svalbard Tax Administration, will give the Norwegian authorities a better overview.
POLITICS China’s Coast Guard on First Patrol in the Arctic With Russia Chinese Coast Guard and Russian Border Service vessels have conducted a joint patrol in the Arctic Ocean for the first time. The interaction takes place in the wake of a memorandum of understanding that the parties signed last year on maritime law enforcement.
POLITICS Putin Appoints Nikolai Korchunov New Ambassador to Norway The top Russian diplomat, Nikolai Korchunov, comes from the position of Ambassador at Large for Arctic Affairs.
BUSINESS Inside the Elaborate Scheme to Transport a Chinese Power Plant to Russia’s Arctic Undetected In a desperate attempt to salvage Russia’s largest liquefied natural gas project a small fleet of Chinese cargo vessels has set sail for the Arctic. Aboard is a massive power plant for Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 project.
POLITICS NORAD Commander: Unsafe and Unprofessional Conduct by Russian Fighter off Alaska The North American Aerospace Defense Command has published a video in which a Russian Su-35 fighter conducts a close maneuver toward a US F-16 fighter on an interception mission off the coast of Alaska. “The conduct was unprofessional and endangered all,” says NORAD Commander.
Op-ed Brahms' Fourth Symphony in Post-Institutional Era: “Okay, Let it Be as You Wish” "Leaving Russia isn’t a straightforward gain. It’s not about dealing with a party you don’t know, but one you are compelled to engage with. Meaningful connections matter far more than generic perfunctory interactions", says Eda Ayadin at the University of London Institute in Paris.
Newsletter Russia's Shadow Play Newsletter: We are following a play for the gallery as it unfolds. In it, Russia has initiated a race against sanctions and winter ice to complete gas projects in the Arctic. The quota crisis has still not been solved, and this week's newsletter also provides you with climate news and much more.
POLITICS Canada and the US Move Forward With Negotiations on the Beaufort Sea Boundary Canada and the US will create a joint task force to undertake negotiations on the maritime boundary in the Beaufort Sea, including their overlapping continental shelf claims in the central Arctic Ocean. Law of the Sea expert Tore Henriksen comments on the US possibly determining the outer limit of its shelf without having ratified UNCLOS.
SCIENCE Marine Researcher on the Decline in the Cod Population: “Not One Sole Cause” The quotas for Northeast Arctic cod will likely not go lower than in 2025, but it will take a few years before there is a significant increase, says marine researcher Bjarte Bogstad in the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research. "We must have low quotas for a few years in order to have a chance at increasing the cod stock again."
POLITICS De-escalation Is Best Achieved With Credible Deterrence and Defense, says Finnish Major General Oslo (High North News): "The Russians only respect strength and determination," says Sami Nurmi, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategy in the Finnish Defence Forces. He comments on the planned NATO forward land force in Finland and underlines the importance of allied competence in operating in Arctic conditions.
POLITICS EU Approach to Russian LNG Remains Fractured as Dutch Imports Increase The upcoming EU transshipment ban for Russia LNG may already be having an unintended consequence: more imports of liquefied natural gas into the EU. But experts contend it is too early to tell and call for an EU-wide approach, rather than individual actions by member states.