An escalating labor strike could soon wipe out almost 25% of Norway’s oil and gas production

A strike by workers in the Norwegian oil sector could soon wipe out nearly one-quarter of the country’s petroleum output, Norway’s Oil and Gas Association warned on Thursday, with the intensifying dispute helping oil prices to build on recent gains. International benchmark Brent crude futures traded at $43.09 a barrel on Thursday afternoon, up more than 2.6%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures stood at $41.01 a barrel, around 2.7% higher.

The dispute between Lederne union and the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association began when talks collapsed on Sept. 30, prompting production outages from Oct. 5. Lederne is pushing for the organization to match the pay and conditions at onshore remote-control rooms with those of offshore workers. The striking union told CNBC that this request would not impose an additional cost on companies.

Six offshore oil and gas fields shut down on Monday as a result of the strike action, Norway’s Oil and Gas Association said, cutting output by 8% or 330,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In 2012, Norway’s government used emergency powers to step in and force offshore oil and gas workers back to work, bringing an end to a 16-day strike.

An escalating labor strike could soon wipe out almost 25% of Norway’s oil and gas production, CNBC, Oct 8