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USD 1 = NOK 6.60 No. 20 - 15 June 1993
CONTENTS:
Salmon in demand (1)
Twenty-eight vessels in minke whale hunt (2-3)
Boom year for cruise traffic (4)
Former defence chief drafted into UN staff (5)
Development of Gyda South (5)
Digital x-rays (6)
Remote control of Ekofisk? (7)
Official opening - 50 years afterwards (8)
Acid rain threatens new salmon rivers (9)
Green light for airline merger (10)
Hanging ten in Telemark (10)
norinform/1 15 June 1993
SALMON IN DEMAND
Prices for fresh salmon are climbing to the sky. Recently prices reached
a new record of USD 6.66 per kilogramme for gutted farmed salmon in the
4kg - 6kg range. One year ago prices were USD 3.90 - 4.80.
"We can't really explain why prices are so high," says Dag Koteng at the
Federation of Norwegian Fishing Industry. "There is a lot of salmon on
the market - but the demand is just as large."
But Koteng is cautious when it comes to developments in the market.
"Boycotts of Norwegian fresh salmon in connection with the resumption of
commercial whaling have been minimal so far - in fact we are
experiencing an increase in demand. However, we are taking the threat of
boycotts seriously," says Koteng, who adds that the USA is already out
of the market.
Exports of farmed salmon increased in each single year from 1980 to
1990. After this, however, the industry suffered a blow when prices
fell, but now they are on the way back up again.
It is expected that the production and export of farmed fish will
increase in the near future. In recent years a number of government and
private research groups have achieved significant progress towards the
production of new farmed fish such as halibut, sea char, cod, turbot and
catfish.
norinform/2-3 15 June 1993
TWENTY-EIGHT VESSELS IN MINKE WHALE HUNT
After four boats withdrew from the commercial hunt because the quota of
160 whales is so low, 28 vessels were preparing to start whaling last
week. The Nordland county branch of Nature and Youth has wished whalers
luck. The enviromentalist group supports the Government's decision to
resume whaling and disapproves of the anti-whaling activities of
Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd.
In contrast, the Clinton administration does not share Norway's whaling
decision. Curtis Bohlen at the U.S. State Department says Norway can
expect American sanctions if it maintains its course. In an interview
with the Norwegian business daily Dagens Naeringsliv, Bohlen signalled a
different policy stance than that understood by Minister of Foreign
Affairs Johan Joergen Holst a while back when he met with Vice President
Al Gore and Secretary of State Warren Christopher. At end May, the two
American leaders stressed that the whaling issue must not harm the good
relations between the USA and Norway. They also were said to have
expressed that sanctions against Norway would be unlikely. According to
Dagens Naeringsliv, Christopher now claims to be misinterpreted, and says
that Norway can count on sanctions if minke whales are commercially
hunted.
"This is news to me," said the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs
when confronted with the American standpoint. "If we had known that the
USA was
../..
norinform/3 Cont.... 15 June 1993
preparing sanctions against Norwegian products, our discussions would
have taken a different line," said Holst. He does not rule out such
reactions but the U.S. has yet to officially notify of impending
sanctions.
EC FISHERIES CHAIRMAN WILLING TO DISCUSS WHALING
The Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs in the Storting was on the
offensive last Monday when a delegation of EC Parliament members visited
them in Oslo to establish an inter-parliamentary committee and discuss
Norway's relations with the Community. The chairman of the EC
Parliament's fisheries committee, Pierre Lataillade, concluded after
speaking with Storting members that if the minke whale is not a
threatened species, then whaling is a possible topic for negotiatory
talks. But the EC Parliament recently condemned Norwegian whaling in a
resolution and he stressed his disagreement with Norway's decision to
disregard the IWC ban, and commented that it could foster disrespect for
international agreements.
At the same time, Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs Margarethe af
Ugglas gave her colleague Johan Joergen Holst some welcome support while
visiting Oslo along with Swedish King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia.
"Sweden wishes, as do other nations, to protect endangered species. But
to my understanding, a limited amount of whaling is biologically
viable," she stated.
norinform/4 15 June 1993
BOOM YEAR FOR CRUISE TRAFFIC
1993 will be a boom year for cruise traffic to Norway. Cruise ship
operators reckon on a 30 per cent increase compared to the record-
breaking year of 1991. More than 160 cruise ships will be calling at the
west coast town of Bergen, generally regarded as the gateway to
Norway for this type of tourism.
The big attractions for foreign tourists are still the fjords of the
west coast, the Lofoten Islands and the North Cape, though other areas
are becoming popular too. The Arctic archipelago of Svalbard seems to
be particularly attractive to American tourists. The main bulk of cruise
passengers visiting mainland Norway this year will come from
Britain and Germany, though an increasing influx of Frenchmen, Spaniards
and Italians is also expected.
The reason for the sharp rise in traffic is shorter and cheaper cruises,
a wider range of age groups among passengers and the fact that many new
cruise ships are competing. Norway is also attracting far more interest
abroad as tourists discover its spectacular scenery.
Nils Standal, port manager in Bergen, estimates that the 1991
cruise season brought USD 5.3 million in earnings for local businesses
and nearly ten times this amount for the country's businesses as a
whole. He believes that a large scale promotion of the summer season
could bring local tradesmen earnings in the magnitude of USD 150 to 220
million.
norinform/5 15 June 1993
FORMER DEFENCE CHIEF DRAFTED INTO UN STAFF
Former chief of defence and chairman of NATO's military committee,
Vigleik Eide, has been appointed as a UN advisor in the former
Yugoslavia. Drawing on long military and political experience,
Eide will assist Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's special
coordinator, Thorvald Stoltenberg, in his attempts to establish a
ceasefire, confine the conflict, and prevent new Balkan conflicts from
breaking out.
"In my opinion it becomes impossible to work under such extreme
conditions if you lack faith that peace is attainable. But you need a
realistic outlook regarding how difficult the objective is," says
Eide. He doubts that any immediate breakthroughs are forthcoming, but
says that efforts have to be made even if results don't come until the
distant future. The new advisor does not rule out a military
intervention. "To get results you have to operate with something
positive as well as threats. Let's hope that the carrot is the
solution rather than the stick," says Eide.
DEVELOPMENT OF GYDA SOUTH
The Norwegian Government has given the go-ahead for plans to develop
the Gyda South field on the southern edge of the Norwegian continental
shelf. The field contains 6.5 - 15.1 million barrels of oil, but
with development costs limited to about USD 16 million, it will break
even as long as crude sells for at least USD 6 a barrel. British
Petroleum is the operator.
norinform/6 15 June 1993
DIGITAL X-RAYS
An electronic sensor can replace traditional x-ray plates, claim two
Norwegian researchers, Einar Nygaard and Arne Kjensmo, who have developed
a better way of looking into things. In a recent contest initiated by
the Oslo Research Park, the two were awarded the first prize for their
invention. They have already started a firm, Integrert Detektor og
Elektronikk AS, which will continue with the project. Nygaard says that
Norwegian companies could deliver components for the system as well as
produce entire x-ray units.
The system is expected to win acceptance in industrial x-ray use, such
as the hunt for cracks or weak spots in metal structures. But it will
also be a boon to medical and dental x-rays. Dentists currently ask
patients to bite down on a photographic plate which subsequently has to
be developed. But with the new system an electronic sensor is placed in
the mouth. After giving the patient a one-second low dosage of x-rays,
the dentist gets a high resolution digitalized picture that covers a
bigger area of the oral cavity. These pictures can be stored and with
each visit, the dentist can take a new one to keep track on a patient's
jaw bone tissue and teeth.
Nygaard and Kjensmo have both worked at the Foundation for Scientific and
Industrial Research at the University of Trondheim, the University of
Oslo, and the Cern research centre in Geneva.
norinform/7 15 June 1993
REMOTE CONTROL OF EKOFISK?
By the turn of the century, Ekofisk operator Phillips Petroleum may be
able to eliminate a large number of offshore workers from platforms in
the field as the installations may be operated by remote control.
Management is now working with plans to remote control 8 of the 11
Ekofisk installations and close down others in the next 10-12 years. If
this happens, only the main platforms will be manned, while the
satellite installations will be remote controlled.
Operations director Rolf Wiborg at Phillips justifies the dramatic
plans by the company's need to reduce operating and maintenance costs at
the twenty-year-old Ekofisk installations. Expenses, which amount to
about USD 1 billion annually, threaten to devour profits. Remaining
field reserves are currently estimated at 6 billion barrels of
oil, meaning that production can continue until the year 2030 - but
only if operations remain profitable for such a long time.
The company has already begun negotiations with offshore unions
concerning the reductions in manpower. Today, 4,000 are employed in
connection with Ekofisk activities. Wiborg gives no estimate on the
number of workers to be removed in the shift to remote control
technology, but Phillips' own employees are not expected to run the
risk of losing their jobs.
norinform/8 15 June 1993
OFFICIAL OPENING - 50 YEARS AFTERWARDS
Oslo's Vigeland Park, one of Norway's biggest tourist attractions,
drawing around one million visitors a year, has finally been officially
opened - 50 years after the death of its initiator. The ceremony took
place at the beginning of June, when the world-renowned sculptor Gustav
Vigeland's sculpted self-portrait was officially unveiled and became
part of the park's collection of outdoor exhibits. Vigeland made a
design of the sculpture in 1941, two years before he died. Later it
languished as a plaster model until the institution known as Fritt Ord
(Free Word) paid for a bronze cast, which it then donated to the park.
Sponsor deals are not unknown in the history of the park, also known as
Frogner Park. Close to the main gates, Vigeland erected a "Monument to
contributors". Affixed to it is a plaque bearing the names of all those
who donated towards the creation of the park. Topping the list is King
Haakon VII, who gave USD 1,500 in 1906, when this was a great deal of
money. Later contributors have included IBM, which donated the sculpture
"Slekten" (The Family) in 1988. Subsequent donators have contributed the
so-called Triangle Park with the Triangle sculpture, given by the
financial firm Eiendomsspar, and 40 park benches of novel design, made
and given by Alcatel STK.
The society Frognerparkens Venner (Friends of Frognerpark) has been
calling for an expansion of the park for years. Its efforts seem to
have succeeded, as plans are now in hand to include the Frogner Stadium
in the park itself. The society is also hoping to have a bandstand
erected, as well as a pavilion for an information centre and souvenir
shop.
norinform/9 15 June 1993
ACID RAIN THREATENS NEW SALMON RIVERS
Salmon stocks in many rivers on the west coast are now threatened on
account of acid rain, according to the Directorate for Nature
Management. It fears that the watercourses in Hordaland and Sogn og
Fjordane Counties will be damaged in the same way as has earlier
happened in southern Norway and Rogaland County. In these areas,
25 species of salmon have been wiped out by acid rain. The
Directorate has warned the Ministry of the Environment about the new
situation.
The report says that so-called "sea salt episodes" can have caused the
death of fish in many rivers last winter. Stormy weather brought the
sea salt in over land. Normally this causes no damage, but in
areas with large amounts of acid rain the salts start chemical reactions
which result in acidic water and the leaching of aluminium from the
soil. For young fish the result can be fatal.
The regulation and transfer of water can also be an explanation for the
death of the fish, but the evidence seems to indicate that the
general increase in pollution is a cause. The investigation of a
single watercourse system reveals that the 1992 generation of salmon fry
died, and the same is expected in 1993. If this is the case, the
salmon stock has reached a critical phase.
In addition to neutralizing rivers with lime, the Directorate will
attempt to save threatened species of salmon by using gene banks. Where
species in need of special protection are concerned, materials for the
gene banks will be collected before liming begins.
norinform/10 15 June 1993
GREEN LIGHT FOR AIRLINE MERGER
The Government has given the Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) the go-
ahead signal to start serious negotiations with Swissair, Austrian
Airlines and the Dutch airline KLM, with a view to a future merger.
This was announced by Minister of Transport and Communications Kjell
Opseth in a recent statement to the Storting, Norway's national
assembly. The companies hope to merge as a means to survive the
competition as air traffic in Europe is deregulated in phases in the
course of the next few years.
HANGING TEN IN TELEMARK
The world's biggest artificial surfing wave - and the only existing one
in Europe - was recently opened for the public in the leisure park
Telemark Sommarland, in south Norway. 400,000 litres of water a minute
are pumped into the pool, which cost USD 3.4 million to build. Expert
surfers from Hawaii and California gave a breathtaking demonstration of
how to ride the wave, when the installation was opened.
A number of foreign leisure parks would like to create their own
tsunamis, but for one year after the opening, Telemark Sommarland has
the world rights to the wave. Last year the park had more than 182,000
visitors, but the owners hope that the wave will bring this number up to
at least 200,000 this year.
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