In what seemed like an episode of the Norwegian television drama Occupied , Norway’s largest political party joined smaller ones in the nation’s parliament to prevent oil exploration in the scenic Lofoten archipelago. The Labor Party’s environmental wing made climate change and scenic beauty big issues. Unlike another contentious oil resource, Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge , these islands get around 1 million visitors each year. That implies that many Norwegians have actually seen the islands. In the history of oil-rich nations, Norwegians have followed an unorthodox path. While most such nations have chosen to subsidize domestic prices of petroleum products or at least keep them cheap by policy, Norway has taxed consumption of oil and oil products as if the country were an importer trying to economize on petroleum use. A recent Bloomberg survey showed that the average price of a gallon of gas worldwide was $3.48. The […]