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Paradoxes in Stavanger’s green ambitions

  • check-in
  • 3 mars 2019
  • 4 min de lecture

The Norwegian ‘oil capital’

Stavanger is situated on a peninsula along the south-west coast of Norway. Today 130.000 inhabitants live in the city, being the third largest populated city in Norway. In the 1970s, oil resources offshore were discovered along the Norwegian coasts and the city quickly established itself as the Norwegian oil capital.

Map of Norway

Although Stavanger has traditionally relied on fish and shipbuilding economies, the oil industry is now the largest economic sector of the region and most of the local population (nearly 50%) works in this field. The oil era boosted the development of Stavanger in many regards. The city population grew by more than 50% between the 1960s and the 1970s. New neighbourhoods flourished, as for instance Madla area, where housing has been massively built to host foreign engineers, investors and their families. The city also acquired a proper university in 2004, with a strong links to the oil industry.


Statoil (Equinor) - the Norwegian state oil company - ensures the oil extraction, transformation and commercialization of the country’s hydrocarbon resources. Stavanger was chosen to host its headquarter since its creation in 1972.

Ekofisk, the largest oil deposit in the vicinity of Stavanger (http://www.conocophillips.no/our-norway-operations/greater-ekofisk-area/ekofisk/)


A city responsible for, but also threatened by climate change

Owning major oil fields, Stavanger authorities are blamed by green activists and fishermen unions for condoning the marine biodiversity destruction and carbon emissions caused by the oil economy.

Oil fields along the western coast


The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns of the irreversible effects if global warming was to exceed 4°C. Regarding Stavanger, the potential sea-level rise will negatively impact the city. The city takes part in many projects to become « climate neutral » or « climate resilient ». The current municipality objective is to make Stavanger a « smart city » (see Triangulum project). This expression borrowed from urban studies covers many topics. In the framework of climate and environment resilience, it implies the introduction of technologies into the daily lives of urban dwellers able to mitigate, or at least adapt to climate change. The municipality has already fixed clear objectives: the city must reduce its carbon emissions by 20% by 2020. Policies were already implemented to reach this goal. Car taxes have been introduced and green belts are built on the beachfront. Furthermore, the city commits itself to reinvest a great deal of the oil incomes into renewable energies research and development.

From an 'oil capital' to an 'energy capital'


Over the past years, official documents and speeches insisted to recognize the city of Stavanger as an « energy capital » (instead of « oil capital »). This semantic shift is part of a broader greenwashing policy. Such a political strategy consists in the use of marketing to portray a policy as environmentally friendly when it is not. The objective to avoid guilt over de facto polluting behaviours.


Despite the green objectives set by the city, a major part of inhabitants, local authorities’ members and local industries are not considering giving up the oil industry soon. In its « smart city » program, local authorities wish to develop « the region’s expertise in energy production, in order to achieve a strong escalation of green energy, while also turning the extraction of non-renewable energy resources in Norway into the most environmental friendly in Europe ». Largely financed by the municipality-owned oil company, the research activities led at University of Stavanger (UiS) support these ambitions. The municipality (in conjunction with the oil industry) absolutely do not think of giving up oil.


Besides, alongside the green movement, a countermovement has emerged within the oil industry. The later denies the environmental nuisances associated with the extraction and consumption of oil. The leaders of this industry consider that giving up oil would correspond to an increase in coal production and consumption (i.e. the worst energy when it comes to carbon emissions). As chief economist in Statoil, Eirik Wærness even congratulates his country for choosing oil: “Imagine the Co2-emissions Europe would have had if 40 years of Norwegian exports of gas rather had been covered by coal.” In the testimonies collected for her thesis, Marikken Wullf Wathne shows how young oil engineers deflect their responsibility for climate change. Some think the increase of the world’s population and consumption are more harmful to our planet, while others insist on their « green » ways of life. In contrast, older workers, because they can compare the pre-oil period to the contemporary one, argue that fishing economy (a traditional and sustainable economic sector) is threatened by the oil industry (which will one day run out of breath). They insist on the necessity to gradually separate from oil energy.


To conclude, these insights on Stavanger’s green ambitions reveal the greenwashing strategies hidden behind the local authorities’ discourses. Things can change, but in order to do so, mentalities of the young generations must evolve, and the political body must dissociate itself from the oil interests. ***

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