OSLO, July 3 (Reuters) – A strike planned for next week by Norwegian energy workers could cut the country’s gas production by 292,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, or 13% of output, the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association (NOG) employers’ group said on Sunday.

Oil production could be reduced by 130,000 barrels per day, NOG added, which corresponds to about 6.5% of Norwegian production, according to a Reuters calculation.

The strike, in which workers are demanding higher wages to offset rising inflation, comes at a time of high oil and gas prices, with supplies of natural gas to Europe particularly tight after the reduction of Russian exports.

Lederne union members, who make up around 15% of the country’s offshore oil workers, on Thursday rejected a proposed pay deal that had been negotiated by the companies and union leaders. Read more

As a result, they plan to begin a strike on three offshore fields on July 5 and add three more fields the next day unless a solution is found.

A seventh field, Tyrihans, will have to close because its production is processed from the nearby Kristin field, which will close.

The parties discussed, but no progress was made.

“There have been discussions, but we don’t see a solution,” a NOG spokesman told Reuters on Sunday.

The Lederne union was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters.

The other Norwegian oil and gas unions have accepted the wage agreement and will not go on strike.

Reporting by Terje Solsvik and Gwladys Fouche; Editing by Jan Harvey

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