Statoil, in partnership with the Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs, has supplied Russia with three oil spill response systems, today 7 June. Statoil has funded their upgrading.
The equipment has previously been used by the Norwegian Clean Seas Association For Operating Companies (Nofo). Norwegian prime minister Jens Stoltenberg was responsible for handover of the three systems, marked with a ceremony in Murmansk at the start of his Russian visit.
"It's positive that Norwegian oil spill technology can contribute to increasing preparedness in the far north," says Henrik Carlsen, senior vice president for Statoil's Barents Sea organisation.
"This is one of several concrete results of the close collaboration Statoil has had with the regional government in Murmansk," he adds.
"Environmental challenges are taken seriously. Later this year, an oil spill laboratory funded by Statoil will be opened. The lab will be able to supply valuable information in the event of an oil spill from a ship."
The Frank Mohn AS (Framo) company in Bergen has produced the equipment which has been upgraded and certified in partnership with Statoil. The package is worth around NOK 12 million. The equipment is suited for the rough weather conditions of the far north and deployment on ocean-going vessels.
The package's key components are three different remote-controllable skimmers. In other words, they can be controlled from several points on such vessels and thereby be in use around the clock, improving crew safety. As part of Statoil's contribution, Framo has provided practical and theoretical training in equipment use.