Statoil CEO Comments on Investment in Renewables

Statoil will look to invest more in renewable energy in the coming years, the company's chief executive officer Helge Lund has said.

Helge Lund told reporters that the oil and gas producer is committed to putting funds into renewables but the industry must prove that new energy sources are profitable.

Mr Lund is quoted by Bloomberg as saying: "This business has to be subjected to the same profitability criteria as the rest of our operations. Over time, the investments in renewable have to be able to compete with investments we have in other areas."

Statoil, which is headquartered in Oslo, is the largest oil and gas operator in Norway and also has a number of licensees in the deepwater regions of the Gulf of Mexico.

Reports suggest that Statoil may consider purchasing licences in renewables over the next three or four years.

The company already operates Hywind – the world's first full-scale floating wind turbine – and is developing the Dogger Bank and Sherringham Shoal offshore windfarms in UK waters.

Source: Low Carbon Economy, http://www.lowcarboneconomy.com/community_content/5/10783/statoil_ceo_comments_on_investment_in_renewables