The document discusses Arctic challenges, including the petroleum potential of the Arctic region and boundary delimitations between Norway and Russia. It summarizes the 2010 agreement between Norway and Russia that delineated a former disputed area of 175,000 square kilometers in the Barents Sea. It also discusses the Jan Mayen agreement between Norway and Iceland that applied geological criteria to delimitation for the first time. Furthermore, it examines the Svalbard Treaty and whether its provisions apply only to the islands and territorial waters or also to the continental shelf area within the defined "Svalbard Box".

1. .
ARCTIC CHALLENGES.
By
EGIL BERGSAGER
FOCUS ARCTIC PETROLEUM POTENTIAL,
DELIMITATION NORWAY RUSSIA, JAN MAYEN AGREEMENT AND
SVALBARD “BOX”,
TORE VORREN SEMINAR. TROMSØ. MARCH 18 2015

2. North of the Arctic
Circle
• Total area >21million
km2
• 6% of the Earth’s
surface
• Land area
~8million km2
• Shelf area (<500m)
>7million km2

3. The Arctic
IBCAO, Martinsson et al 2000
Arctic
N. Africa,
Caspian Sea,
M. East
25% of World
undiscovered
resources lie in the
Arctic
Source: USGS.
Rest of the
World

4. from L.P. White, R.S. Bishop and D.L.
Gautier, 2005
The Arctic is largely unexplored; Resources are not well understood

5. NORTHERN PASSAGE. A NEW SHIPPING ROUTE

6. Barents Sea
1.2 million km2. More than twice the size of the total
Gulf of Mexico

7. New maritime border line
Formal negotiations
started in Moscow
November 25th, 1974.
Agreement signed in Oslo
April 27th, 2010 when
D.A.Medvedev visited
Oslo.

8. FORMER DISPUTED AREA I
• AREA AROUND 175 000 KM²
– LARGER THAN THE NORWEGIAN NORTH SEA.
– CONSIDERED VERY PROSPECTIVE
• NEGOTIATIONS SINCE 1974
– THE PRESENT AUTOR ON NORWEGIAN NEGOTIATING TEAM 13 YEARS.
– LOTS OF CHAMPAGNE, BALLET AND CAVIAR. NOT MUCH BORDERLINE BEFORE PUTIN
AND MEDVEDEV
• BOTH NATIONS ARGUED FROM LAW OF THE SEA
– NORWAY: PRINCIPLE OF EQUIDISTANCE. MEDIANLINE.
– RUSSIA: SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

9. FORMER DISPUTED AREA II
• FAIR DEAL.
– 50% SHARE TO EACH COUNTRY.
– EXPERIENCE THAT THE LARGE NATIONS TAKE THE “BROTHER SHARE”.
• NORWAY-RUSSIA COMMON BORDER MORE THAN 1000 YEARS
– NO WAR
– GOOD BASIS FOR COOPERATION
• OFFICIAL NAME OF THE TREATY:
“MARINE DELIMITATION AND COOPERATION”

12. JAN MAYEN
• FIRST TIME GEOLOGIC CRITERIA ACCORDING TO THE NEW LAW OF THE SEA WAS
APPLIED IN DELIMITATION.
– §76. Geologic prolongation
• AREA OF COOPERATION N AND S OF BORDERLINE.
– ICELAND 25% CARRIED INTEREST N OF BORDERLINE.
– NORWAY 25% NOT CARRIED S OF BORDERLINE.
– EXPLORATION HIGH RISK FOR A SMALL ICELAND ECONOMY NOT RECOMMENDED.
• MAIN NORWEGIAN INTEREST DISPUTED AREA IN THE BARENTS.
– NORWAY WAS STRONGLY AGAINST AREA OF JOINT JURISDICTION.
– DEMONSTRATED THAT FOLLOWING AN ESTABLISHED BORDERLINE AREAS OF COOPERATION
COULD BE ESTABLISHED.
• JAN MAYEN AGREEMENT STUDIED BY “THE POPE”.
– THE PRINCIPLE OF ACCESS TO POSSIBLE RESOURCES ON THE OTHER SIDE OF AN ESTABLISHED
BORDERLINE
– THE POPE MEDIATOR BETWEEN CHILE AND ARGENTINA

13. Barents Sea
1.2 million km2. More than twice the size of the total
Gulf of Mexico

14. SVALBARD BOX I
• SVALBARD TREATY PART OF VERSAILLES PEACE TREATY
– 1920
• ISANDS WITHIN 10E, 74N, 35E AND 81N
– PART OF ROYAL KINGDOM OF NORWAY
• NORWEGIAN ADMINISTARTION ESTABLISHED 1925
• 39 COUNTRIES HAVE SIGNED THE TREATY
• VERY LOW TAX LEVEL
– SHALL ONLY COVER ADMINISTRATION OF ISLANDS
• RIGHT TO EXPLORE AND DEVELOP IF COMMERCIAL DISCOVERIES ARE MADE
• INDIRECT MEASURES, i.e. STRUCTURES DEFINED BY SEISMIC ACCEPTED AS
BASIS OLI AND GAS LICENSES

15. SVALBARD BOX II
• LEGAL STATUS OF SHELF AREA QUESTIONED
• THE NORWEGIAN VIEW CLEAR:
– THE TREATY APPLIES ONLY WITHIN ISLANDS AND THEIR TERRITORIAL WATERS
• STATED IN TREATY
• KEY NATIONS/ALLIES HAVE “RESERVED THEIR POSITION”
– NO ONE THINKING OF OFFSHORE ACTIVITIES 1920
– UK MOST ACTIVE

16. SVALBARD BOX III
• NPD WITH EXTENSIVE SEISMIC SURVEYS
• DATA AVAILABLE AND COMPANIES CAN DO SURVEYS ONLY
BETWEEN 74ºN-74º30´N
– CREEPING JURISDICTION
• 2 LICENSES ALLOCATED 22 CONCESSION ROUND.
– INCLUDE MAJOR US AND FRENCH COMPANIES.
• NO DATA MADE AVILABLE AND NO COMMERCIAL SURVEYS
ALLOWED NORTH OF 74.30 N

17. SVALBARD BOX IV
IF NORWAY CONTINUES THE POLICY OF NO ACTIVITY
ON THE SHELF AREA WITHIN THE SVALBARD BOX
NORTHE OF 74.30.N, OTHER NATIONS IN AN ENERGY
HUNGRY WORLD MIGHT SECURE THAT THE MINING
LAW OF SVALBARD IS APPLIED

18. THANK YOU FOR THE ATTENTION