Technology and the environment
Snøhvit has been a groundbreaking project for environmental technology:
- no surface installations, subsea facilities overtrawlable
- production on the field takes place in a closed system without harmful discharges to the sea
- production on the field is not visible
- biological treatment plant on land to deal with environmentally harmful components
- about 700,000 annual tonnes of carbon dioxide accompanying the gas to land is separated out, piped back to the field and stored in an underground formation
- new record for long-distance pipeline transport of an unprocessed wellstream
- alongside Ormen Lange, Snøhvit is the first major NCS development without surface installations
- LNG carriers built to the strictest environmental and safety standards.
Social aspects
The experience of the local communities in and around Hammerfest with the development has been largely positive, and it has given residents and business in the area a substantially better foundation for future development and growth.
- Several thousand people from the whole country worked on the Melkøya plant during the construction phase. Most came from western Finnmark, Rogaland/Hordaland in western Norway and Oslo/Akershus in the south-east.
- Employment in Hammerfest increased by 390 jobs during the development phase, while its population rose by 341 people after many years of stagnation.
- Price rises for and shortages of housing during the construction period presented recruitment challenges. No less than 230 homes were completed in Hammerfest between 2002 and 2005.
- Property tax receipts for Hammerfest council as the host authority have risen substantially, allowing it to invest in better services for its residents.
- Income tax receipts have increased for the whole of Finnmark county from a large number of long-distance commuters working in Hammerfest.
- Positive net inward migration of young people to Hammerfest after many years of population decline.
- The developer, regional players and the market have been the most important development factors, while the government’s role has been more limited compared with earlier oil/gas projects in western Norway.
Supplier programme
The impact assessment carried out ahead of the Snøhvit project estimated that the local share of contracts during the development phase would be roughly NOK 600 million. In practice, the figure has proved considerably higher and stands at almost NOK 3 billion for northern Norway alone. Of this, roughly half went to Hammerfest
More than 3,700 people from northern Norway have been employed at Melkøya, with over 2,200 of them from west Finnmark. Norwegians working at the site totalled 10,600. Overall, the Snøhvit project is expected to boost long-term local employment by 400-500 jobs.
| |
| Total contracts |
47.1 |
100 |
| National share |
30.0 |
64 |
| North Norwegian share |
2.8 |
6 |
| Of which |
|
|
| Hammerfest |
1.5 |
3 |
| Alta |
0.3 |
|
| Kvalsund |
0.1 |
|
| Rest of Finnmark county: |
0.1 |
|
| Troms county: |
0.5 |
|
| Nordland county: |
0.3 |
|
| Oslo/Akershus counties |
7.5 |
16 |
| Rogaland/Hordaland counties |
17.9 |
38 |
Among the many measures implemented to ensure the highest possible value creation during the Snøhvit development, particular mention can be made of the Petro Arctic supplier network.
This is an interest organisation for companies wishing to position themselves as suppliers to the development and operation of the Snøhvit gas liquefaction plant, the Goliat project and other future developments in northern Norway and the Barents Sea.
