Shell Joins Bidders for Norway's 2026 Oil, Gas Exploration Round
Shell (SHEL.L, SHELL.AS) unit Norske Shell is among the 21 companies that applied for new production licenses in the Norwegian energy ministry's 2026 licensing round on the Norwegian continental shelf, according to a Friday release.The British oil giant joined the latest Awards in Predefined Areas, or APA, following its absence from the 2025 licensing round, which received applications from 20 companies. Other bidders include Aker BP (AKRBP.OL), DNO (DNO.OL), Equinor (EQNR.OL), Harbour Energy (HBR.L), OKEA (OKEA.OL), OMV (OMV.VI), Orlen (PKN.WA), Petrolia (PSE.OL), Repsol (REP.MC), TotalEnergies (TTE.L, TTE.PA), and Vår Energi (VAR.OL).This year's predefined area expanded in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea by a total of 70 blocks. The awarding of the new production licenses is targeted for early 2027.
