Azernews.Az

By Bloomberg

Oil and gas companies operating in Norway, western Europe’s biggest petroleum producer, maintained their estimates for an investment decline this year and predicted the slowdown will be less severe next year.

Investments will fall to 190.1 billion kroner ($24 billion) in 2015, little changed from a March estimate, from 214.3 billion kroner last year, according to a quarterly survey by Statistics Norway. They are also seen falling to 184.9 billion kroner in 2016, a first estimate showed.

“After a strong increase in the investments from 2010 to 2013, investments flattened out and peaked in 2014,” the agency said in a statement. “Recent investment surveys indicate a significant decrease in the investment level in 2015. The oil companies’ preliminary estimates indicate that the fall will flatten out in 2016.”

The survey signals the slowdown in investments will be less severe than the central bank has estimated. The bank kept rates unchanged in May and reiterated it’s prepared to ease again after lowering in December. The bank has estimated that oil investments will fall 15 percent this year and 10 percent next year.

The krone surged 1.1 percent to 8.73 per euro as of 10:23 a.m. in Oslo.

A plunge in oil prices is weighing on Norway’s offshore industry, which is preparing for the biggest drop in investment since 2000. Companies such as Statoil ASA are reining in spending while oil producers in Norway have already announced more than 10,000 job cuts.