Norway offshore maintenance strike ends as wage dispute goes to arbitration

A Norwegian union representing offshore oil workers and an employers' group agreed Tuesday to send their wage dispute to an arbitration board, ending a month-long strike.

The Norwegian Union of Energy Workers, known as SAFE, began the strike in mid-June after it failed to reach a collective wage agreement with industry group Offshore Norge.

Offshore Norge said last week that the strike was costing 500 million kroner, or $51.6 million, each week and had caused production losses of 2.4 million barrels of oil equivalent.

On Tuesday, Offshore Norge said the parties had agreed to refer the dispute to a voluntary wage board, meaning an independent tribunal will resolve it later.

The dispute involved workers who maintain and service oil wells. SAFE said those workers had fallen behind other sectors in wages and working conditions.

Raymond Midtgard, SAFE's union leader, said in a statement published by YS, a grouping of nine Norwegian unions, that all employees would return to work as soon as practically possible.

Elisabeth Brattebo Fenne, Offshore Norge's chief negotiator, said she was pleased with the outcome and that SAFE had chosen to take part in ending what she called a costly conflict.

The source said Norway is Europe's largest oil and gas producer excluding Russia and has increased supply to the European continent amid energy vulnerability exposed by the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.