Norwegian minister of Foreign Affaires, Jonas Gahr Støre, says to Fiskeribladet Fiskaren that Norway has worked closely with Iceland in finding oil and gas resources on the continental shelf. The treaty signed this week outlines an agreement in the border areas between Iceland and the Norwegian iceland of Jan Mayen.
Iceland is planning to open areas in the north-eastern part of its continental shelf called the “Northern Dreki Area”, for oil and gas exploration.
– The treaty gives us predictability and a good framework for both government officials and commercial companies exploring the area, says Støre.
A treaty from 1981 gives Norway the right to a 25 percent participation in a limited part of Iceland’s continental shelf. The new treaty clarifies better the terms in the 1981 agreement.
The new treaty is signed only three days after the Norwegian Bank gave the Icelandic Government a loan of approximately 1 million EUR. The loan is a part of Norway’s support to Iceland in their struggle to turn around the financial crisis the country are going trough.
