The Supreme Court of Norway will consider whether the state has violated the Constitution in granting new oil licenses in the Arctic, as the environmental organisations Greenpeace and Nature and Youth insist.
“We believe the state must be sued and that the oil licenses must be declared invalid. A victory will be historic and have major, real consequences for the climate”, Frode Pleym, the leader of Greenpeace Norway, told national broadcaster NRK.
Previously, the environmental movement suffered another defeat when the Court of Appeal in January rejected their claim that oil exploration in the Barents Sea contradicts the Constitution. However, the decision must now be considered by Norway's apex court, after both organisations appealed the ruling.
“The climate lawsuit in the Supreme Court will be a big kick in the backs to all Norwegian politicians. They have failed to do what our rights require of them – to preserve nature and a sustainable climate”, Nature and Youth leader Therese Hugstmyr Woie said.
Despite having lost in the Court of Appeal, both organisations were satisfied with some of the interpretations in the January ruling. The Court of Appeal agreed that climate emissions from Norwegian oil that are burned abroad must be taken into account when considering the legality of oil licenses.
During the trial in the Court of Appeal, Attorney General Fredrik Sejersted said that questions about oil policy must be decided in parliament, and not in court. He believed a victory for environmental organisations would wrest power away from parliament.
“The state is well pleased with the verdict. The district court has ruled that neither a violation of the Constitution nor procedural errors occurred, contrary to what the plaintiffs believed”, Sejersted said.
Former Energy Minister Sylvi Listhaug was also pleased with the Court of Appeal verdict, but voiced fears that more lawsuits of the same kind threaten to “erode democracy” and hoped they won't become an “unfortunate trend”.
Paragraph 112, which the greens claim has been violated, says “Everyone has the right to a healthy environment and a nature where production ability and diversity are maintained by law”.
The trials initiated by the activists were met with extensive coverage and threaten major repercussions for the Scandinavian nation, whose welfare and economy remain dependent on the oil and gas sector. Norway covers about 2 percent of the global oil demand and 3 percent of the natural gas demand.
Having surpassed Qatar in 2017, Norway became the second-largest exporter of natural gas in the world, behind only Russia. Nearly all oil and gas produced on the Norwegian shelf is exported, and combined, oil and gas equals about half of the total value of Norwegian exports of goods, making them the most important commodities in the Norwegian economy. Last but not least, Norway supplies about 25 percent of the EU's gas demand.
