Our Arctic Neighbors: Snohvit helping Hammerfest despite slow start

Norway’s prime minister, speaking at the ONS energy conference in Stavanger Aug. 26, defended the Snohvit natural gas project in the Barents Sea. Snohvit has been plagued by startup difficulties, mainly associated with the liquefied natural gas plant at Melkoya, near Hammerfest. “I regret that there have been huge technical problems,” Jens Stoltenberg said. “StatoilHydro is taking this very seriously and is committing big resources to solve the problem. Snohvit will have large positive ripple effects for Norway and the world.”

A new report by the Northern Research Institute in Tromso says that Hammerfest has gone from recession to growth and optimism thanks to Snohvit. Hammerfest, which has a population of 9,261, suffered from high unemployment before the Snohvit project began in 2002. It has recently experienced a clear population growth in the 20-40 age bracket. Many of the same effects can be seen in the municipalities of Kvalsund, Alta and Kautokeino, according to the institute.

The report also notes that most companies signing contracts for the project are from southern Norway, and that it will be a challenge for companies from northern Norway to get involved in future.

—Sarah Hurst