THE Norwegian government's tax-relief plan for the oil industry risks not winning approval from opposition parties as critics suggest it would fail to maintain a high level of activity on the country's continental shelf. The proposed package, unveiled last week, is intended to improve the liquidity of oil companies operating off Norway by NkrlOO billion ($9.5 billion). However, critics claim the new tax scheme does not improve the net present value of new projects. The opposition is concerned that the money would not be spent on new Norwegian projects. The major opposition parties -Labour, the Progess Party and the Center Party - have told Upstream it is crucial that the relief package secures a high activity level on the Norwegian continental shelf, which they do not expect it to do in its current form.
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