Nehammer visits – Norway is Austria’s new gas friend

The war in Ukraine has many beneficiaries. One of them is Norway. The country tripled its natural gas exports in 2022. Austria has also turned north in search of a replacement for Russian gas. Chancellor Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) visited the Scandinavian country on Wednesday with a business delegation. During a joint appearance with his Norwegian colleague Jonas Gahr Støre, he emphasized that OMV is buying more gas from Norway. A five-year supply contract was signed with state energy giant Equinor. From October 1, 2023, an amount of twelve terawatt hours (TWh) will be supplied annually to the virtual hub in Germany. Austria’s annual gas consumption is approximately 90 TWh.

Norway has been storing CO₂ underground for years
An important topic during the visit was the storage of CO₂. Norway has been doing so-called ‘carbon capture and storage’ (CCS) for more than thirty years. The gas is liquefied and led to empty gas and oil fields and stored. The technology is expensive and is being scrutinized by some environmental organizations. The Greens no longer reject them. However, CO₂ storage is prohibited in Austria and eight other EU countries, including Germany.

The ÖVP insists that this ban be lifted quickly. “We can only become stronger and more competitive through technological openness,” says Nehammer. As part of his visit to Norway, where he was accompanied by Minister of Economic Affairs Martin Kocher (ÖVP), the Chancellor visited a CSS project near the capital Oslo. In this plant, waste is burned and used to generate energy. The resulting emissions will be liquefied and stored in the future.

Austria is developing its own strategy
As minister responsible for mining, Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) will be tasked with developing a strategy for CO₂ storage. However, the condition is that Parliament approves it with a two-thirds majority. According to analyzes by the Ministry of Finance, five to ten million tons of CO₂ would have to be stored annually. Austria does not have sufficient storage space for this and would have to export CO₂ to Norway. Other countries are already doing this.

Norway is a pioneer in the field of renewable energy
The Greens are now open to CCS, but insist it should not be a substitute for cutting emissions. Norway achieves its climate goals mainly through savings in the transport and energy sectors. The country already has 80 percent emission-free vehicles and is a leader in renewable energy with 77.4 percent. Nearly 100 percent of the natural gas and oil produced is exported. Norway has had a CO₂ tax since 1991, which is currently one of the highest in the world at 180 euros. In Austria this is 32.5 euros per tonne.