At 12 o’clock the hard-pressed energy minister takes the floor of the Storting to give his account of the power situation. According to Dagbladet, more than 80 proposals are expected from the opposition, but there are no new cases coming from the government today. Terje Lien Aasland confirmed this himself when he met the press at a breakfast meeting a few hours before the Storting meets for the first time since the summer. He instead referred to the planned Storting meeting on 30 September, where the government’s proposal for electricity support for business will be presented. – In the short term, we are prioritizing measures to protect households and relieve the burden on businesses, says Aasland. Energy Minister Terje Lien Aasland and former LO leader Gerd-Liv Valla gave each other a form of high five outside the Storting this morning. Valla was there to demonstrate, Aasland to explain. Photo: Mats Rønning / news He refers to the existing electricity subsidy scheme for households and the new fixed price scheme in the state budget. – It is the fixed price agreements that are the government’s main move in the short term. The long-term measures are about more power, greater capacity in the power grid and more energy-efficient solutions for how we use electricity, says Aasland. Storting warns The pressure on the government is great ahead of Monday’s power meeting. Several business owners are disappointed with the electricity support scheme for the business sector that was presented before the weekend. In addition, there are new demands from former Ap and LO leaders in the so-called Alternative Energy Commission, which gathers for a demonstration outside the Storting. Former LO leader and Labor minister Gerd-Liv Valla in the Alternative Energy Commission put forward demands for political action against electricity prices outside the Storting today. Photo: Beate Oma Dahle / NTB The temperature inside the parliament hall is also expected to be high. The opposition will put forward a wide range of proposals for immediate changes in energy policy and improvements to various electricity support schemes. But from the government’s side, the energy minister gives a clear warning to the opposition: – My message is that they should use my explanation as the basis for how they assess the situation. It is Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and the energy war being waged against Europe, which is the main reason why there is a shortage of energy, says Aasland. It is Putin who is primarily responsible for the high energy prices, says Energy Minister Terje Lien Aasland (Ap). Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB – The aim is to create economic unrest in European countries and at the same time lay a foundation for division and despair. Several countries are already warning that there is a high probability of electricity rationing next winter, says Aasland, who adds that this will probably not be necessary in Norway. He warns against voting for “simple proposals” that increase public spending, not least for reasons of loan interest. – The time for spending more oil money is over. It will increase the likelihood of new interest rate increases and make the situation even more demanding for ordinary households, not least young people in the establishment phase, he says to news. No maximum price The Progress Party and party leader Sylvi Listhaug have been among the government’s fiercest critics during the electricity crisis. The party is today repeating its proposal to introduce a maximum price, where the state covers 100 per cent of the electricity bill above 50 øre. – We must have measures that actually work, says Aasland, who is strongly critical of the Frp’s solution. – If it had worked to introduce a maximum price, we would have done it a long time ago. But a maximum price will increase the scarcity of electricity and delay the necessary investments. It also has a very unfortunate distributional effect, he says. The energy minister is also under pressure from the left, where the Red party wants completely new political moves in European energy cooperation. Rødt also wants a maximum price, combined with better regulation of exports and requirements for security of supply. Rødt’s Sofie Marhaug has been highly critical of the government’s handling of the case. Here at a power demonstration this winter. Photo: Tony Ågotnes / news – It seems to me that the opposition is divided and lacks common solutions to the challenges, says Aasland, who believes that the political discussion is “very polarized”. – I hope we can find a common basis for the discussions. But it is demanding, when the debate about electricity prices is as polarized as it is, he says. MDG’s Lan Marie Berg believes Aasland is exaggerating the division among the opposition. – I think he is wrong. We are many parties that have called for better measures, including for solar energy and energy saving. There are big gaps in the government’s crisis management. Now Ap should sit down with the opposition in the Storting and see what kind of new measures we can agree on, she says – The autumn will be tough It is unusual for the Storting to meet so early in the autumn. Normally, the National Assembly does not meet until October. The backdrop is the energy crisis in Europe. – Autumn will be tough and demanding. Safe financial management is important to avoid more and higher interest rate increases, says Aasland. Alongside the electricity subsidy scheme which was strengthened in September, with the state now covering 90 and not 80 per cent of the bill above 70 øre per kilowatt hour, the government has announced more money in the state budget for NVE and the Ministry of Oil and Energy. Among other things, the grants will ensure faster processing of improvements in the power grid and applications for new projects in wind and hydropower. Before the weekend, a comprehensive scheme was put in place for Norwegian companies with a framework of NOK 3 billion, in a scheme that will help 20,000 companies struggling with expensive electricity bills. Aasland says in the state budget the government will also come up with a plan to reduce energy use in buildings by 10 terawatt hours of electricity up to 2030. During the autumn, the details of the new regulation of power exports will also come out, which will prevent water reservoirs from becoming critically low. SV wants negotiations A wide range of proposals will be put forward by the parties in the Storting during the debate after Aasland’s presentation, but the governing parties do not expect to win the majority against them today. The reason is, among other things, the agreement to negotiate first with SV on measures that have consequences for the national budget. But SV does not want to wait until the actual negotiations on next year’s state budget, says parliamentary representative Lars Haltbrekken. – We expect the government to sit down with us to negotiate on making the electricity subsidy for households more generous and more supportive. In addition, we must have new ENØK measures and structural measures in place to avoid a similar situation arising again, he says. Haltbrekken says these negotiations can be taken up immediately, because they will have consequences for the current budget. – The situation must of course be seen in the context of the national budget for next year as well, he says. SV is in a special position among the opposition parties as the government’s preferred budget partner. The party will put forward three main proposals with a total of 20 individual points during today’s parliamentary meeting.
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Aasland towards “simple solutions” to the electricity crisis – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
