A bomb threat against the Nyhamna gas plant at Aukra led to a full evacuation of the plant on Thursday morning. Preparedness at Norwegian oil and gas facilities has been high following the explosions at the gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea. And last week, preparedness was further intensified when the government decided to restrict port access for Russian fishing vessels. In a written question to Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland (Ap), Kjell Ingolf Ropstad (KrF) asks what is being done to prevent sabotage on the exchange cables for electricity. On Monday, the power cable between Norway and the Netherlands will be operational again. The cable has been out of service since the beginning of May. The National Audit Office has previously pointed out that the work with Norwegian object protection is “deficient” and contains “significant weaknesses”, including the protection of civil installations against electricity. In the North Sea and Skagerak, current cables run to Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany and England. Photo: news – Norway is in an extra vulnerable position In the question, Ropstad refers to the geopolitical situation and that Norway is in a vulnerable position. In response, the energy minister says that Norway has the necessary spare material in stock and “can carry out a repair should an incident occur”. He adds that the cables are buried in the seabed, although this is “primarily a measure aimed at protecting fishing activities, not against sabotage or deliberate damage.” – When it concerns the land plants for the offshore cables, these generally have the highest security class. The sea cables from Southern Norway Suldal municipality in Rogaland to England (North Sea Link) Capacity: 1400 megawatts. Trial operation from November 2021. Sirdal municipality in Agder to Germany (NordLink) Capacity: 1400 megawatts. Trial operation from December 2020, regular operation from 31 March 2021. Kvinesdal in Agder to the Netherlands (NorNed): Capacity: 700 megawatts. Opened: 2008. Different parts of Agder to Denmark (Skagerrak 1,2,3 and 4) Total capacity: 1700 megawatts. Opened in 1977 (Skagerrak 1 and 2), 1993 (Skagerrak 3) and 2014 (Skagerrak 4). The three red dots show where there are leaks on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines. Graphic: Sjöfartsverket – In hybrid war, the attacking party can hide Since last autumn, several mysterious incidents in Norwegian waters have been interpreted within the framework of hybrid war, i.e. a mixture of conventional military operations and alternative means such as cyber attacks and sabotage. Ropstad tells news that he “is glad the minister is concerned about the security of the foreign cables”. – As recently as yesterday, there were reports of challenges with an oil pipeline in Poland. It is important that we are not naive. The gas pipelines Nord Stream 1 and 2 started leaking into the Baltic Sea on Monday. Introduced “increased vigilance” in February Requirements for the protection of facilities, information security and defense against ICT attacks are regulated in the so-called Emergency Preparedness Regulations, which NVE oversees. NVE also leads the Kraftforsyningen’s emergency organization (KBO), which consists of major power producers and Norwegian grid companies. The KBO was instructed by the ministry to introduce “increased vigilance” all the way back in February – when Russia invaded Ukraine. – This means that the company has long had increased vigilance both when it comes to physical facilities and ICT, says Aasland. On Wednesday he was in Prague to discuss how Europe will face the energy shortage. The same evening, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is again ready to export gas to Germany through an undamaged part of Nord Stream 2, which was partially destroyed in September. Germany has rejected the offer.
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The government guarantees the power cables “if something were to happen” – news Vestland
