Press

Once considered an asset the oil and gas division of A.P. Moller-Maersk is being bought by French giant Total. The $7.45 billion deal is expected to be completed by 2018, pending regulatory approval. Coming just three months after the sale of Dong Energy’s North Sea oil and gas production to German-based Ineos, Maersk’s move to offload its oil division has been welcomed by the government and trade unions alike. The irony is that Denmark will need the income from oil and gas to finance its green transition and meet a pledge to stop using fossil fuels by 2050. That will mean keeping up production from the North Sea fields, which Total has promised to do. According to calculations by the Finance and Economy ministries, tax revenue from North Sea oil and gas has now fallen to a tenth of what it was at its height, only a decade ago. The Daily Star