STAVANGER, Norway, Dec. 29 (UPI) -- Offshore Norway continued its trajectory for expanded oil and gas exploration work, with the government signing off on two new programs.
Norwegian energy company Statoil, which is partially owned by the government, was given consent to drill an exploration well in the Norwegian Sea. A subsidiary of Lundin Petroleum, meanwhile, was given approval for an exploration well in the Barents Sea, which holds a good deal of what's left in terms of oil and natural gas reserves off the coast of Norway.