Naturkraft is a Norwegian

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 power company

Power Company

The Power Company was a team of professional superheroes-for-hire in the DC Comics universe. The team, created by Kurt Busiek and Tom Grummett, first appeared in JLA 61,...

 that operates one natural gas

Natural gas

Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...

 powered thermal power station

Thermal power station

A thermal power station is a power plant in which the prime mover is steam driven. Water is heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was heated; this...

 located at Kårstø

Kårstø

Kårstø is an industrial facility located in Tysvær, Norway. The site features a number of natural gas processing plants to refine natural gas and condensate from the fields in the northern parts of the North Sea, including Åsgard, Mikkel and Sleipner...

. It also holds a permit to build a second one at Kollsnes

Kollsnes

Kollsnes is a natural gas processing plant owned and operated by Statoil on the southern part of the island Oøy in Øygarden, Norway. It processes the natural gas from the gass fields Troll, Kvitebjørn and Visund with a capacity of 143 million standard cubic meters of natural gas per...

. The company is owned by Statoil

Statoil

Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...

 and Statkraft

Statkraft

Statkraft is a Norwegian state owned electricity company. With a total energy production of 44.9 TWh in 2007, the Statkraft Group is the third largest energy producer in the Nordic region, as well as the largest energy producer based on renewable energy sources in Europe,consisting of 40% of the...

, with 50% each.

History

The company was founded in 1994 by Statkraft, Statoil

Statoil

Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...

 and Norsk Hydro

Norsk Hydro

Norsk Hydro ASA is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. Hydro is the fourth largest integrated aluminium company worldwide. It has operations in some 40 countries around the world and is active on all continents. The Norwegian state holds a 43.8 percent...

 with 1/3 ownership each, though Statoil in 2004 sold its ownership to Statkraft and Norsk Hydro. In 1996, Naturkraft received permission from the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate

Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate

The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate is a Norwegian government agency established in 1921. It is under the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy and regulates the country's water resources and energy supply. Its mandate includes contingency planning for floods, serving as a centre of...

 to build both of the plants, at Kårstø and Kollsnes. In 1997, the permits were confirmed by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy

Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy

The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy is a Norwegian ministry responsible for energy, including petroleum and natural gas production in the North Sea. It is led by Minister of Petroleum and Energy Ola Borten Moe...

. In 1999, the permit for emissions was granted by the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority, and confirmed by the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment

Norwegian Ministry of the Environment

The Royal Norwegian Ministry of the Environment is a Norwegian ministry established in 1972. The ministry is responsible for environmental issues in Norway. It is led by the Minister of the Environment, Erik Solheim...

 in 2001.

In September 2005 Arne Liverud took up the position as CEO at Naturkraft AS.

Controversy

The construction of the two power stations has provoked a huge controversy in Norway, due to the large amounts of carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...

 that will be emitted. The Kårstø plant will emmit 1.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, or about 2.5% of the total emissions of Norway. Prior to the opening of the Kårstø power station

Kårstø power station

Kårstø Power Station is a natural gas-fired thermal power plant located at the industrial site of Kårstø in Norway. The station is owned and operated by the company Naturkraft, that is again owned by Statkraft and Statoil and opened on 2 November 2007...

 on November 2, 2007 Norway's sole domestic production of grid electricity was provided through renewable energy

Renewable energy

Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...

.