By Tsvetana Paraskova – Dec 18, 2019, 3:30 PM CST 
Norway appointed on Wednesday a skeptic on wind power and climate change as its new oil minister who will oversee oil and gas drilling and wind turbine installations on and offshore Western Europe’s largest oil producer.
Sylvi Listhaug of the right-wing Progress Party was appointed Minister of Petroleum and Energy on Wednesday, replacing Kjell-Børge Freiberg who was “honourably discharged from his office,” the Norwegian government said.
Listhaug is taking over one of the most important ministries which oversees one of Norway’s top exports—oil and gas—as well as the government’s majority stake in energy giant Equinor. The new appointment comes as political parties in Norway debate about how far into the Arctic they should allow oil and gas drilling.
While Norway’s oil policies are not expected to dramatically change under the new minister who is of the same party as the previous head of the petroleum ministry, Listhaug comes into office with a baggage of some controversial statements in the past regarding wind turbines and climate change.
In an interview with Norway’s VG outlet back in 2011, Listhaug said that “it has not been proven that human CO2 emissions cause climate change. It is mostly an excuse for imposing more taxes.”
Then in August this year, the new oil minister told Norwegian broadcaster TV2 that Norway does not need wind power, and referred to wind turbines as “white monsters.”
In Norway, hydropower accounts for 95 percent of electricity production, while thermal power production and wind power represent 2.4 percent and 2.6 percent of electricity production, respectively, according to Statistics Norway.
Full story here.
HT/Willie Soon
Having lived in the country for over 35 years I have seen how all political parties, including Sylvie Lysthaugs FrP, have moved to say that there is a climate crisis and Norway needs to go in front as an example to other countries in solving this crisis. The Norwegian government is always made up of a bunch of small parties in a coalition where the extreme views, such as that climate change is natural, are held in check by the other parties.
Some years ago I had dinner with one of the previous oil & energy ministers from the same party, before he took the role, and a bunch of other well educated people. All of us were clearly skeptics. Once he came in office he changed tune completely, to avoid upsetting the political applecart, and pushed wind hard.
Norway is also the homeland of Gro Harlem Brundtland, who was instrumental in starting this whole circus, and who has stated that it is immoral to question the science! She still has a lot of political power in Norway, especially within the largest political party, Labour.
Norway is a very wealthy country, as a result of whaling, shipping, hydroelectric power and most recently oil & gas. Most people are left leaning and support the consensus view about anything! The wealth has also allowed Norway to virtue signal with two of the most expensive ways of reducing CO2 emissions ever; electric cars and powering offshore o&g platforms with electricity from land. (The Norwegian negotiators at Kyoto promised to match EU emissions reductions but forgot that Norway is 99% hydro powered!)
So, don’t expect any changes in official Norwegian policy any time soon. Remember Norway produces gas for Europe and the climate scare is a great way of marketing this product, coal is still cheaper but if a high CO2 tax were to be introduced Norwegian gas could be competitive.
“Once he came in office he changed tune completely, to avoid upsetting the political applecart, and pushed wind hard.”
This is the typical pattern. Up and coming politicians will have some moral integrity but it is disposable at any moment. Hell, it’s true in any power hierarchy– all integrity is expendable for the purpose of success and renown.
Hence the term “spineless”, used to describe politicians in particular.
The guy certainly has a great job. Better than being Minister of Sand in Egypt.
She. Sorry.