avoid falling into the resource trap: "white coal" and "black gold" coexist harmoniously in norway
2024-09-18
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kirkenes, norway
(located about 400 km north of the arctic circle)
winter scenery.
norwegian prime minister støre paid an official visit to china recently. china and norway agreed to establish a dialogue on green transformation between the two countries and transform to renewable energy and low-emission solutions in a fair, just and orderly manner.
since the discovery of oil and gas resources in the middle of the last century, the norwegians, who live in a corner of europe, have become one of the richest countries in the world by virtue of the resource dividend and have developed a complete social welfare system. although the abundant oil and gas resources have brought "huge wealth" to norway, the self-disciplined norwegians have not settled for a permanent solution and fallen into the "resource trap", but have actively embraced green energy. "white coal" (abundant hydropower resources) and "black gold" (rich oil and gas resources) are coexisting harmoniously in norway, the "country of ten thousand islands".
gifts from nature and the awakening of the norwegians
even though many european countries are borrowing money to fill their budget deficits, norway can achieve a budget surplus. this confidence comes from norway's huge oil and gas resources. in the 1960s, norway began to explore the north sea continental shelf. after the discovery of the ekofisk oil field, one of the world's largest oil fields, in the north sea in 1969, the fate of the norwegians began to change.
since the discovery of the oil fields, norway has often presented such a scene: the offshore oil drilling platforms in the barents sea and the norwegian sea are busy working every day, and major energy giants are competing to bid for the oil and gas fields on the norwegian continental shelf. the norwegian national petroleum corporation has become one of the world's largest crude oil suppliers and an important natural gas supplier in europe. it is precisely with the stable supply of norwegian oil and gas that european countries have survived the "winter" of energy shortages after the sanctions on russia.
with oil and gas resources, norwegians have gained huge wealth. today, norway is one of the countries with the highest income in the world. the norwegian government also uses the wealth brought by oil and gas to build a social welfare system. in the most critical areas of medical care, education and pension, norwegian citizens enjoy good welfare. behind the expansion of social welfare spending is the strong support of oil and gas revenue.
with such a huge fortune, norwegians proudly say: "even if we do nothing, the existing oil resources are enough for us to live in abundance for 150 years!"
because it is located in the arctic circle and surrounded by the sea on three sides, norway is greatly affected by global warming, and more and more norwegians are calling for attention to environmental issues.
thorstrud, a retired norwegian hotel owner, said that norway's dependence on oil revenue is "like a child on its mother", and the consequences of this dependence are an overly large government budget, a bloated public sector and a labor shortage that hinders the development of the private sector. "this is absolutely unsustainable."
norwegians remain rational about the huge wealth brought by oil and gas. they know that the oil and gas resources gifted by nature will eventually run out, and only by developing new energy sources and committing to sustainable development as soon as possible can they benefit future generations.
promoting the parallel development of clean energy and oil and gas resources
it is hard to imagine that in such a cold place like norway, you can see all kinds of charging stations everywhere. you know, the climate in northern europe is not friendly to the battery life. however, last year, electric vehicles accounted for more than 80% of new car sales in norway. norwegians also ambitiously hope that next year, all cars in the country will be electric vehicles.
the popularity of electric vehicles in norway is a microcosm of norway's national development of green energy. the norwegian government has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% from 1990 levels by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. to this end, norway has invested heavily in renewable energy such as offshore and onshore wind power and solar power plants to promote the development of clean energy technology. in august last year, norway's first floating offshore wind farm was fully operational. at the end of last month, the norwegian sovereign wealth fund announced that it would invest 900 million euros in the renewable energy fund.
norway has abundant rainfall and a long history of hydroelectric power. today, more than 90% of the country's electricity comes from hydroelectric power. almost all of the energy "flowing" in norwegian electric cars is clean water energy. the capital oslo has taken the green transformation a step further. through the "car-free livable plan", private cars are banned within 1.9 square kilometers of the city center of oslo. the city is also one of the first cities in the world to have a climate budget. with careful planning, oslo's carbon emissions have been reduced by 36% since 1990.
in the process of norway's energy transformation, we have to mention the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, the norwegian sovereign wealth fund. in order to prevent economic unsustainability caused by resource depletion, norway established a sovereign wealth fund in the 1990s. the source of funds is oil and gas revenue, but its purpose is to invest in various emerging industries in the long term, especially in the research and development of renewable energy and environmental protection technologies. so far, the fund has invested in more than 8,700 companies in more than 70 countries around the world, with a total value of 17.75 trillion norwegian kroner (1 norwegian kroner is approximately 0.0944 us dollars).
at the same time, norway promotes the parallel development of clean energy and oil and gas resources. the norwegian government pays special attention to the research and development of carbon capture and storage technology, such as installing carbon capture and storage equipment on oil and gas platforms, thereby significantly reducing carbon emissions in the production process, which can not only ensure the exploitation of oil and gas resources, but also promote innovation in environmental protection and energy technology. norwegian minister of climate and environment eriksson said that norway's experience shows that the abundance of oil and gas resources is not contradictory to the development of clean energy.
author: shen qinhan
text: our reporter shen qinhan photo: xinhua news agency editor: gu wenjun responsible editor: liu chang
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