Norway Adds 8.6 Billion Barrels to Arctic Oil, Gas Estimates

Norway just added billions of barrels of oil and gas to its resource estimate as the nation pushes farther into controversial areas in the Arctic waters off its northern tip.

The first-ever assessment of a still closed-off area bordering Russia in the Barents Sea boosted Norway’s estimate for undiscovered crude and gas by 1.37 billion cubic meters of oil equivalent, or about 8.6 billion barrels, according to Bente Nyland, director general of the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. About 60 percent of these resources are expected to be liquid.

The eastern Barents Sea North could become a “significant oil and gas province,” ...