Norway currently supplies 30% of the EU's total gas consumption. Before the war with Ukraine, Gazprom supplied about 35% of all of Europe's gas.
Of the more than 100 billion cubic metres of Norwegian gas exported to Europe in 2023 - enough to supply Germany with energy by 2026, about two-thirds will be marketed and sold by Equinor.
Bloomberg said that as long as the EU continues to depend on fossil fuels, Norway's hydrocarbures will still be necessary to maintain operations in Europe.
Equinor's vision "has changed significantly as Russian gas flows have declined," said Irene Rummelhoff, head of the company's mid-source, marketing and processing division.
The new position of the Norwegian gas giant has raised questions about whether European leaders are once again putting countries in this continent at risk of relying too much on a single supplier, Bloomberg noted.
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck visited Oslo in early January 2023. Two months later, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Norway's Troll gas field, which supplies 10% of Europe's gas. EU energy tycoon Kadri Simson has also visited Norway twice in the past two years.
At the end of April this year, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz thanked Norway for helping Germany gain independence from Russian gas in just a few months. Chancellor Scholz also praised Norway as a perfect partner to ensure supply to Germany and Europe.
The new role as a gas supplier to Europe has brought Norway huge profits: Gas exports reached a record high of 1,400 billion kroner (130 billion USD) in 2022.
Traders' focus on buying gas from Equinor has led to a series of other problems. Equinor's growing role in Europe was highlighted last summer, when the company announced that maintenance at some of its largest gas facilities would be extended. In just a few minutes, gas prices skyrocketed by nearly 20%.
The unscheduled shutdown has seriously reduced Norway's exports for several weeks and prompted gas traders across Europe to consider the Equinor maintenance effect.
As gas prices become more dependent on the state of the economy, traders are starting to pay more attention to the daily announcements from another Norwegian company - Gassco AS - about changes to the maintenance schedule across Norway.
The European gas market is more vigilant about unexpected shutdowns by gas companies.
By 2022, Russia's Gazprom was still a reliable supplier and was the main reason for the steady gas price over the past decade, Bloomberg noted.
However, when sudden disruptions occurred more frequently, gas prices skyrocketed, leading to an energy crisis.
Norway's gas supplies are expected to hit a new record this year. Equinor is also making efforts to increase capacity and better organize maintenance.
With a new wave of LNG from the US and Qatar appearing in the coming years, the importance of Equinor and Norways gas to Europe will eventually decline - Christopher Kups, head of European energy research at Bank of America, pointed out.
In addition, Irving Rummelhoff of Equinor said that the amount of LNG imported into Europe in recent times has also helped normalise the market.
