Author: Statoil

Norway’s Statoil — majority-owned by the Norwegian state — expanded into U.S. shale during the boom, pairing offshore expertise with unconventional gas plays in formations like the Marcellus and Bakken. Backed by sovereign capital and a global portfolio, the company entered American drilling amid ongoing scientific and regulatory examination of whether the gas extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing — or fracking — poses hazards to groundwater drinking supplies. As development scaled, the groundwater question remained central to public debate.