This year's maintenance programme and gas deliveries through the summer and beyond

Gas from the Norwegian continental shelf now accounts for more than 30 per cent of natural gas consumption in Europe. To ensure that both production systems and safety are safeguarded on the Norwegian shelf, extensive maintenance work is carried out every year in the period April to September. Gassco is coordinating this work in order to be able to deliver as much gas as possible during this period as well.

"Maintenance work is planned well in advance and must be completed before winter and the peak gas export season to Europe. The Norwegian shelf's maintenance varies yearly, with less planned for 2025 compared to 2023 and 2024. This will lead to increased deliveries this summer," says Alfred Skår Hansen.

Delivery record in 2024

In 2024, a delivery record was set for the transport of natural gas to Europe, despite extensive maintenance activities at both processing plants, receiving terminals and on fields. Last year, Gassco supplied 117.6 BCM of natural gas, or 1295 TWh converted into energy. This accounts for about nine percent of all energy consumption in Europe in 2024.

"The record year 2024 was the result of many factors, including high and stable production from all fields, robustness of the transport system, and optimisation throughout the value chain. This shows our capacity to meet the urgent need Europe has right now and our ability to deliver under increasingly demanding conditions," says Hansen.

Natural gas deliveries ahead

Production on the Norwegian continental shelf is currently at its highest, and the forecast for available gas deliveries to Europe in the years to come will be reduced markedly from 2030. At the same time, calculations for Europe's energy demand over the next twenty years show that there is still a great need for natural gas in Europe.

"Production from the Norwegian continental shelf is at its highest today. If Europe needs Norwegian pipeline gas in the future, we are dependent on investments that limit the pace of the decline in production. Such investments require two things: areas to explore and a clear market for energy in a united Europe," says Hansen.