Today in Norway: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday
New housing projects put on hold, the government gifts Norway's crown prince and princess a 500,000 kroner concert, and other news making the headlines on Tuesday
Housing construction stalled as new home sales plummet in eastern Norway
New home sales in eastern Norway have plummeted by 58 percent over a two-year span.
As a direct consequence of this decline, the region is now witnessing the suspension of new housing projects.
The severity of the situation has been underscored by recent data revealing a marked surge in the cancellation of housing projects during the summer months.
Chief economist Andreas Benedictow of the Samfunnsøkonomisk analyse consulting company told the business newspaper DN that such levels of cancellations have not been seen since the financial crisis.
Crown prince couple receives 500,000 kroner concert gift from Norwegian government
The Norwegian government paid for a gift worth half a million Norwegian kroner for the country's crown prince couple - a pop concert.
The surprise featured an internationally successful Norwegian pop star, Dagny, commemorating the crown prince couple's 50th birthdays in August, the newspaper VG reported on Monday evening.
The expenses, tallying up to 475,000 kroner, were covered by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The production company D3 was responsible for the technical aspects, equipment, planning, and execution. Their share of the total cost amounted to 300,000 kroner.
The remaining 175,000 kroner was paid to the artist and her accompanying musicians.
Oslo to test out later school start times
Starting in 2024, Oslo will launch a new initiative allowing some school students a later start to their school day.
Highlighting the concern of inadequate sleep among young people, Sunniva Holmås Eidsvoll, the City Councilor for Education, said that the current trend of insufficient sleep among pupils adversely affected both learning and overall health.
In response, Oslo is gearing up to conduct a trial of delayed school start times to address these issues. Participating in this project is at the discretion of individual schools.
Equinor agrees to hefty fine following Melkøya plant fire
Equinor, the Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company, has agreed to a fine exceeding 100 million kroner in response to a fire that erupted at the LNG plant on Melkøya in Hammerfest in September 2020.
Speaking to the newspaper Teknisk Ukeblad, press officer Ola Morten Aanestad confirmed that Equinor accepted the fine, thereby concluding the matter.
An investigation report by the Norwegian Petroleum Safety Authority, released in April 2021, exposed "serious breaches of regulations."
The report pinpointed deficiencies spanning management and governance, staffing, risk assessments, maintenance, and external emergency resources oversight.
In August of the current year, the police imposed a 130 million kroner fine upon Equinor.
Swimming ban lifted in Oslo Fjord following sewage incident
On Monday, Oslo Municipality announced the recommendation against swimming in the Oslo Fjord would be lifted.
The guidance had been issued after a sewage spill, where approximately 130 million litres of sewage entered the Alnaelva River and eventually reached the Oslo Fjord.
Swift action was taken to halt the spill once it was detected.
In consultation with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), the relevant local authorities agreed that the swimming ban could be lifted on Monday.
Comments
See Also
Housing construction stalled as new home sales plummet in eastern Norway
New home sales in eastern Norway have plummeted by 58 percent over a two-year span.
As a direct consequence of this decline, the region is now witnessing the suspension of new housing projects.
The severity of the situation has been underscored by recent data revealing a marked surge in the cancellation of housing projects during the summer months.
Chief economist Andreas Benedictow of the Samfunnsøkonomisk analyse consulting company told the business newspaper DN that such levels of cancellations have not been seen since the financial crisis.
Crown prince couple receives 500,000 kroner concert gift from Norwegian government
The Norwegian government paid for a gift worth half a million Norwegian kroner for the country's crown prince couple - a pop concert.
The surprise featured an internationally successful Norwegian pop star, Dagny, commemorating the crown prince couple's 50th birthdays in August, the newspaper VG reported on Monday evening.
The expenses, tallying up to 475,000 kroner, were covered by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The production company D3 was responsible for the technical aspects, equipment, planning, and execution. Their share of the total cost amounted to 300,000 kroner.
The remaining 175,000 kroner was paid to the artist and her accompanying musicians.
Oslo to test out later school start times
Starting in 2024, Oslo will launch a new initiative allowing some school students a later start to their school day.
Highlighting the concern of inadequate sleep among young people, Sunniva Holmås Eidsvoll, the City Councilor for Education, said that the current trend of insufficient sleep among pupils adversely affected both learning and overall health.
In response, Oslo is gearing up to conduct a trial of delayed school start times to address these issues. Participating in this project is at the discretion of individual schools.
Equinor agrees to hefty fine following Melkøya plant fire
Equinor, the Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company, has agreed to a fine exceeding 100 million kroner in response to a fire that erupted at the LNG plant on Melkøya in Hammerfest in September 2020.
Speaking to the newspaper Teknisk Ukeblad, press officer Ola Morten Aanestad confirmed that Equinor accepted the fine, thereby concluding the matter.
An investigation report by the Norwegian Petroleum Safety Authority, released in April 2021, exposed "serious breaches of regulations."
The report pinpointed deficiencies spanning management and governance, staffing, risk assessments, maintenance, and external emergency resources oversight.
In August of the current year, the police imposed a 130 million kroner fine upon Equinor.
Swimming ban lifted in Oslo Fjord following sewage incident
On Monday, Oslo Municipality announced the recommendation against swimming in the Oslo Fjord would be lifted.
The guidance had been issued after a sewage spill, where approximately 130 million litres of sewage entered the Alnaelva River and eventually reached the Oslo Fjord.
Swift action was taken to halt the spill once it was detected.
In consultation with the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), the relevant local authorities agreed that the swimming ban could be lifted on Monday.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.