How Norway, champion of electricity, and Brazil, future organizer of the COP, are developing their production of fossil fuels

While Norway, Europe’s leading oil and gas producer, is increasing its drilling for hydrocarbons (which it sells outside its borders), Brazil, the world’s 9th largest oil producer, is vying for 4th place… Our correspondents describe the situation on site.

Norway, Europe’s leading hydrocarbon producer, does not intend to reduce its oil and gas activities, quite the contrary. The government has granted 62 exploration licenses, compared to 47 in 2023. These licenses authorize 24 oil companies, including Total Energie, to drill in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea, in so-called “mature” areas. , that is to say already exploited.

In Brazil, Lula wants to be an international leader in the fight against global warming. Yet at the same time, he encourages the development of fossil fuels in his country, including in the Amazon Bay. A controversial policy, which contrasts with the ambitions of other South American countries, which for their part are trying to promote the energy transition.

Norway cleanly extracts hydrocarbons which it sells far away

The arguments put forward by the Norwegian government are always the same: employment and economic interest. Norway generated 1,285 billion crowns from the oil industry, of which almost 79 billion euros went into state coffers and the sovereign wealth fund, which now weighs 1,310 billion euros. These figures, which are dizzying, ensure the prosperity of the country, the guarantee of independence from Russia, but also allow the industry to invest in its decarbonization, this is the environmental argument. put forward by the Norwegian Ministry of Energy.

Norwegian NGOs denounce Norway’s hypocrisy and doublespeak. This country at the forefront of electrification (it is the country where the most electric vehicles in the world are driven and where the largest battery recycling plant in Europe is located) promises to produce fossil fuels, but not use them on site. It sells them, and the hydrocarbons are burned elsewhere, generating CO2 across borders. Norway counters, however, that Norwegian oil contributes to reducing CO2 emissions overall, since it replaces coal, or fuels produced in other countries under much less clean conditions.

In Brazil, Lula needs oil windfall for his major social programs

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula proudly displays his very good results in the fight against deforestation in the Amazon and is already preparing to organize with great fanfare the COP30 in 2025. On the other hand, Brazil organized in December a huge auction of oil blocks and significant investments have been announced to develop the sector.

Lula wants to exploit oil in the Amazon Bay. It is this project that particularly worries environmentalists. For the moment, the institution responsible for protecting the environment has refused to issue the operating permit. But the pressures are very strong, and the project, supported by powerful ministers, is far from being abandoned. It must be said that the estimated reserves are immense, with more than 14 billion barrels. Beyond the geopolitical aspects, Lula is counting on oil money to finance, as during his previous mandates, his major social programs.

This oil policy contrasts with the ambitions of other countries in the region. If the majority of South American countries are oil producers, Ecuador rejected by referendum the exploitation of oil in a national park, while Colombia, which wants to position itself as a leader in the energy transition, assured that no new exploitation rights will be issued. For these two countries with modest production, depriving themselves of the oil financial windfall is a sacrifice, but Brazil, the 9th largest producer in the world, has much more to lose. Far from wanting to limit the exploitation of black gold, Brazil has just joined OPEC+, the informal alliance of oil-producing countries and aims to become the 4th world producer.