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☆ Scotland's iconic Orkney Islands considering quitting Britain to become part of Norway
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Stromness village in Scotland's Orkney islands. The iconic archipelago is considering the prospect of leaving Britain to become part of Norway. An iconic archipelago off the northeast coast of Scotland is looking at ways it might split off from the U.K. and potentially become a self-governing territory of Norway. Under new proposals brought forward by the local council, the Orkney Islands will explore "alternative forms of governance," including changing its legal status within Britain, as it seeks to provide more economic opportunities for islanders. Under the U.K.'s devolved system of government, Orkney, one of 32 council areas in Scotland, receives allotted funding from the Scottish government.

Persons: James Stockan, Stockan, We've Organizations: BBC Radio Scotland, Scottish Locations: Stromness, Scotland's Orkney, Britain, Norway, Scotland, Orkney, Scottish

[1/3] A memorial to Lord Kitchener, who died when the HMS Hampshire hit a German mine on June 5, 1916, is seen at Marwick Head on the Orkney Islands, Scotland May 3, 2014. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis/File PhotoLONDON, July 3 (Reuters) - Britain's Orkney Islands, an archipelago about 10 miles off the north coast of Scotland, is considering "alternative forms of governance" which could include becoming part of Norway, its council leader said on Monday. Orkney's historic Nordic connections give it options, Stockan believes. A row over funding for new ferries between the islands and Scotland has brought Orkney's situation to a head. Stockan wasn't clear about how Orkney's return to Norway, 250 miles across the North Sea, would work.

Persons: Lord Kitchener, Nigel Roddis, James Stockan, Stockan, Orcadians, Christian I, King of, Scotland's James III, Victoria Klesty, David Holmes Organizations: HMS Hampshire, REUTERS, Scottish, BBC Radio, Channel, England, Thomson Locations: Orkney Islands, Scotland, Orkney, Norway, Faroe Islands, Denmark, British, King of Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom, Oslo

☆ Towering sea cliff in Norway opens jaw-dropping tourist route
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Francesca Street | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Spectacular snow-capped mountain views, aquamarine water stretching out below and sheer, sheer cliff. The towering Hornelen mountain on the western coast of Norway is now open to adrenaline-seekers with the nerves of steel needed to tackle its new via ferrata climbing route. Via ferrata directly translates from Italian to English as “iron path” – it’s a term used to describe mountain climbing routes that use steel cables and fixed ladders to aid climbers. Hornelan mountain is 860 meters (2,820 feet) high and is claimed by tourism board Fjord Norway as the tallest sea cliff in Europe. The new climbing route is van Oorschot’s vision – he’s been working on the project for nine years.

Persons: ” Rogier van Oorschot, Construction, Van Oorschot, King Olaf I of Norway, Kristoffer B, Fürstenberg, ”, van Oorschot Organizations: CNN, CNN Travel, ferrata, Ferrata, Norges, Eagle, Via Ferrata’s Locations: Norway, Europe, Norwegian, Bremangerlandet, Norway’s Nordfjord, Eagle

☆ Orcas in general don't pose a threat to humans — but any encounter with a massive, wild animal has its risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Hannah Getahun | Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Generally speaking, orcas in the wild do not pose a threat to humans. But the boat encounters are still dangerous, and swimming with a massive wild animal can be risky. Generally speaking, killer whales do not pose much of a threat to humans. The Iberian population members targeting boats also do not seem to be interested in humans, Strager noted. However, Strager said it's impossible to draw any conclusions about wild orcas based on the behavior of captive orcas, as they are in such an artificial environment.

Persons: orcas, Hanne Strager, Strager, Andrew Trites, Tilikum, Trites Organizations: Service, Marine Mammal Research, University of British, SeaWorld Orlando Locations: Spain, Portugal, Danish, Norway, University of British Columbia, Canada, Florida

☆ Norway central bank raises rate to 15-year high, with more to come
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The facade of Norway's central bank, also known as Norges Bank, in Oslo, Norway. The central bank predicted the policy rate would rise to 4.25% during the autumn. "If we do not raise the policy rate, prices and wages could continue to rise rapidly and inflation become entrenched," Norges Bank Governor Ida Wolden Bache said in a statement. "Today's hawkish decision shows that Norges Bank means business and is concerned about inflation becoming entrenched," analysts at Nordea said in a note to clients. The hike raises the policy rate to its highest level since the outbreak of the global financial crisis of 2008.

Persons: Norges Bank Governor Ida Wolden Bache, Nordea Organizations: Norges Bank, Reuters, Norges Bank Governor, Bank, European Central Bank, U.S . Federal Reserve Locations: Oslo, Norway, Norway's, U.S

☆ Eve agrees on potential sale of up to 150 flying cars
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SAO PAULO, June 20 (Reuters) - Electric aircraft maker Eve (EVEX.N), controlled by Brazil's Embraer (EMBR3.SA), said on Tuesday it has signed letters of intent for potential sales of its "flying car" to Voar Aviation, Nordic Aviation and Wideroe Zero. Under the new agreements, Eve said in a statement, Voar would operate its eVTOLs in Brazil's main metropolitan areas and popular tourist destinations, such as Sao Paulo, Florianopolis and Salvador. Wideroe Zero's parent Wideroe is already an Embraer customer for conventional jets, currently having three E190-E2 aircraft in its fleet. Its low-carbon unit envisions all domestic short-haul flights to be electric as part of Norway's goal of achieving carbon-neutral aviation by 2040. Reporting by Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Eve, Norway's, Gabriel Araujo, Kirsten Donovan, Louise Heavens Organizations: SAO PAULO, Electric, Brazil's Embraer, EMBR3, Voar Aviation, Nordic Aviation, Wideroe, Nordic, Embraer, Thomson Locations: Brazil's, Sao Paulo, Florianopolis, Salvador, Scandinavia

☆ Question of who will take over NATO looms as Biden meets alliance’s chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington CNN —As President Joe Biden prepares to sit down Monday with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, a personnel issue will be looming: Who will replace the outgoing NATO leader when he departs his post later this year? He’s already received a pitch on United Kingdom Defense Minister Ben Wallace from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during an Oval Office meeting last week. A person familiar with the matter said Sunak entered the meeting prepared to sell Biden on Wallace, though afterward Biden told reporters he wasn’t yet convinced. Other candidates for NATO secretary general could include Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, according to diplomats. Finland’s membership was finalized in April, but Turkey has remained resistant to Sweden joining the defense alliance.

Persons: Joe Biden, Jens Stoltenberg, Biden, Stoltenberg, – NATO’s, He’s, Ben Wallace, Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Wallace, “ We’re, ”, “, haven’t, Mette Frederiksen, Frederiksen, Mark Rutte, Kaja Kallas, doesn’t, It’s Organizations: Washington CNN, NATO, United Kingdom Defense, British, Danish, Dutch, Estonian Locations: Lithuania, Ukraine, Finland, Sweden, Turkey

☆ An electric cruise ship with gigantic solar sails is set to launch in 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Nell Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Adventure cruise company Hurtigruten Norway today revealed plans for a zero-emissions electric cruise ship with retractable sails covered in solar panels, which is due to set sail in 2030. The zero-emissions ship's sails will retract so that the ship can pass under bridges, as shown here in a rendering. This has led to a new wave of designs for eco-friendly sailing vessels, from the transatlantic car carrier Oceanbird and various cargo ships with retractable sails, to Oceanco’s Black Pearl superyacht and Chantiers de Atlanique’s cruise ship with folding solid sails. Hurtigruten Norway has long touted sustainable shipping. In 2019, it launched the world’s first hybrid, battery-supported cruise ship and is currently in the process of converting the rest of its expedition fleet to hybrid battery power.

Persons: Hedda Felin, ”, Gerry Larsson, Fedde, Larsson, Pearl superyacht Organizations: CNN, Hurtigruten, International Maritime Organization, UN Locations: Norway, Norwegian, Oslo, Hurtigruten Norway, “

☆ Replanting the Amazon could slow global warming. Here’s why it’s hard
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +24 min

Milton da Costa Junior nosed his pickup through a remote stretch of the western Brazilian Amazon to check on his babies. Local authorities said the September 2021 incident, which Da Costa outlined in a police report that was reviewed by Reuters, is being investigated. Out of dozens of reforestation initiatives in the country, Rioterra and The Black Jaguar Foundation, a Brazilian-European group, are among the largest. Illegal invaders destroy in hours what it takes Rioterra or Black Jaguar a year to plant. In all, Black Jaguar has signed contracts with 26 farms and planted 326 hectares (806 acres) to date.

Persons: Milton da Costa, Da Costa, Carlos Nobre, Alexis Bastos, Rioterra, ”, Nobre, “, Bastos, Jamari, Dejesus Aparecido Ramos, it’s, ” Bastos, Jair Bolsonaro, Germany –, Bolsonaro, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Black, Ben Valks, Valks, Leandro Silveira, Silveira, São, ” Valks, aren’t, Cristina Banks, Leite, Marcos Mariani, Araguaia, Mariani, Tânia Irres, ” Irres, Regina Molke, I’ll, Clovis, Black Jaguar, Aquaverde, Renato Franklin, “ Ben, ” Franklin, L’Oreal, da Costa, ” Da Costa, da, Spring, Clare Trainor, Catherine Tai, Lais Morais, Ilan Rubens, Lucy Ha, John Emerson, Marla Dickerson Organizations: Milton da Costa Junior, Toyota, Reuters, Black Jaguar Foundation, National Institute for Space Research, Rioterra, Cultural, Environmental Studies, Petrobras, “, Amazon Fund, Environment Ministry, United, United Arab Emirates, São Paulo, Global, Farmers, Brazil’s Central Bank, Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, Imperial College London, Santana, Bolsonaro, United Nations, Space Agency, Copernicus, Sentinel Locations: Machadinho, Rondônia, Brazil, Germany, Brazilian, European, Manhattan, Lebanon, Nicaragua, Bastos, Porto Velho, droves, Rio, Black, Itapuã, Oeste, Norway, United Arab, Pará, Caixa, “, Costa, Syria, Paris, Santana, Araguaia’s, Clovis, Regina, United States, South, Geneva, Rio Preto, da Costa

☆ World's biggest investment fund says firms mismanaging climate risk could face exclusion from next year
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesNorway's $1.4 trillion sovereign wealth fund says it is prepared to start dropping companies for mismanaging climate risk starting next year, adding to the decarbonization pressure that activist shareholders are already piling on firms. It comes shortly after the world's the biggest investment fund said it would vote for shareholder proposals at Chevron and Exxon Mobil's respective annual meetings on Wednesday. Norway's oil fund had refused to back similar shareholder proposals tabled in recent weeks at European oil majors, such as BP and TotalEnergies. Palpable frustrationNorway's oil fund has invested in more than 9,000 companies in 70 countries around the world and acknowledges that "companies care how we vote at AGMs." Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Persons: Carine Smith Ihenacho, Carine Smith, Ihenacho Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, Chevron, Exxon Mobil's, Norges Bank Investment Management, CNBC, Protesters, Salle Locations: U.S, Paris

CNN —A beluga whale widely speculated to be an alleged Russian “spy” has entered Swedish waters, according to OneWhale, an organization set up to protect the animal’s health and welfare. “After four years of swimming south down the coast of Norway, Hvaldimir – known worldwide as the ‘Russian spy’ beluga whale – is now in Swedish waters,” OneWhale said in a statement on Monday. “But the famous beluga skirted around the dangerous waters of Oslo for Sweden,” OneWhale’s statement said. The whale “tends to stay at farms where it has been able to catch fish, grazing on surplus feed,” the directorate added. In 2019, experts told CNN that Hvaldimir was a trained animal, and evidence suggested that the whale had come from Russia.

☆ The harness-wearing beluga whale believed to be a Russian spy has popped up in Sweden, puzzling scientists who noted he's traveling 'very quickly away from his natural environment'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A beluga whale wearing a harness that read "Equipment St. Petersburg" appeared in Norway in 2019. Officials said they believed the trained whale was a Russian navy asset that may have escaped. They also said in the Cold War Russia used beluga whales to sniff out mines and torpedoes. The closest beluga whales live farther north, in the Arctic Ocean and the frigid waters north of Norway and around Greenland. Or it could be loneliness, as belugas are a very social species – it could be that he's searching for other beluga whales," Strand said.

☆ Norway's sovereign wealth fund votes against Chevron and Exxonmobil
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —The world’s biggest investor in the stock market wants ExxonMobil and Chevron to do more to tackle the climate crisis. Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, which holds $1.4 trillion in total assets, announced Friday that it would back calls for the US oil companies to set more aggressive emission reduction targets. It said it would support motions proposed by climate activist group Follow This at the companies’ annual shareholder meetings next Wednesday. ExxonMobil and Chevron (CVX) have urged shareholders to reject them. It holds a 0.86% stake in Chevron and a 1.13% stake in ExxonMobil, according to the latest fund data.

☆ Norway faces backlash from campaigners for 'reckless' pursuit of Arctic oil and gas
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Norway oil and gas giant Equinor and Vår Energi, one of the country's largest exploration and production companies, confirmed to CNBC that the minister recently issued this call. Frode Pleym Head of Greenpeace NorwayIt is estimated that roughly two-thirds of the country's undiscovered oil resources lies off the country's northern coast in the Arctic's Barents Sea. The alternative to oil and gas is not more oil and gas, it is more energy efficiency and renewable energy." A spokesperson for Equinor told CNBC that the company hoped to see "new attractive acreage in the Barents Sea." Separately, a mid-April study from gas infrastructure operator Gassco said building a pipeline to transport gas produced in the Arctic Barents Sea could be worth re-examining due to the country stepping up its gas exports to Europe.

☆ Koepka chasing PGA Championship hat-trick as sun returns to Oak Hill
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROCHESTER, New York, May 21 (Reuters) - After a nasty week of frost, wind and torrential rain the sun returned to Oak Hill on Sunday for the final round of the PGA Championship with Brooks Koepka holding a one shot lead looking to complete a Wanamaker trophy hat-trick. The big-hitting American will head out onto the challenging East Course at 2:30 pm ET (1830 GMT) paired with the 11th ranked Hovland. A victory by Koepka or DeChambeau would not end the human rights questions but would give the tour a bit of the credibility and legitimacy it seeks. McIlroy, an honorary member at Oak Hill, has looked out of sorts all week but the battling Northern Irishman has managed stay in the hunt at five back. Block, who has "Why Not" written on his golf balls, has become the every man bluecollar hero and gallery darling at Oak Hill by carrying the hopes and dreams of every duffer who has picked up a club.

☆ Arrowstreet, Coatue Management among big hedge funds buying Meta in first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, May 15 (Reuters) - Prominent hedge funds including Arrowstreet Capital LLC, D1 Capital Partners and Coatue Management LLC were among the investors that bought shares of Meta Platforms Inc in the first quarter of the year, amid an eye-popping rebound in the Facebook-parent’s stock. Arrowstreet Capital added about 5 million shares during the quarter, brining its total position to slightly more than 7 million shares, while Coatue more than doubled its position in the company by buying 4.2 million shares. Winslow Capital Management, meanwhile, initiated a new position in the firm by buying about 927,000 shares, and D1 Capital Partners bought slightly more than 1 million shares. Norges Bank, the central bank of Norway, was the largest seller among all firms, unloading more than 35 million shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments sold its entire stake of about 569,000 shares, while Glenview Capital Management, run by billionaire Larry Robbins, sold its entire stake of about 526,000 shares, according to filings.

☆ Erling Haaland is on track to become 'the best striker ever' after record-breaking season
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( George Ramsay | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Would he adapt to life in the Premier League? Only Dixie Dean, who scored 63 in the 1927/28 season, has more goals in English football during a single top-flight campaign. Haaland’s Premier League tally, which includes four hat-tricks, is a league record for a single season, breaking the previous mark held jointly by Alan Shearer and Andy Cole. Haaland, Addo observes, has modified his game to devastating effect since arriving in the Premier League, taking his pace, power, and deadly finishing to another level. Mario Hommes/DeFodi Images/Getty ImagesAddo, a former Dortmund player and Ghanaian international, oversees the development of the Bundesliga club’s talented crop of young players.

☆ PlayStation, treasure hunts and natural wonders: What life is like onboard a giant oil tanker
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Lucy Handley | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

The movies, which feature ambushes, looting and a drunken captain, are far from real life, according to shipping veteran Ralph Juhl. The crew on board an oil tanker operated by Hafnia. Where the ship goes depends on where the demand for oil is and Dixon has sailed to every continent bar Antarctica, he said. An aurora borealis light display in the southern part of Norway, one of the natural spectacles seen by oil tanker captain DSA Dixon during his seafaring life. Oil tanker crew prepare mooring ropes to secure a bunker barge to their vessel for refueling.

☆ Freya the Walrus: Norway unveils sculpture of euthanized walrus in Oslo
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Sophie Tanno | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The artist behind a sculpture of a walrus that was controversially euthanized over public safety concerns says she hopes her creation becomes a “three-dimensional history lesson” after it was unveiled in Norway’s capital Oslo. The life-sized bronze statue shows Freya the walrus curled up on her side close to the water’s edge. She hopes it will serve as a “three-dimensional history lesson.”The statue of Freya was unveiled on Saturday in Oslo. She believes that Norway’s Directorate of Fisheries should have dealt with the situation in a more ethical manner. Previously, the directorate told CNN that it was considering multiple solutions, including relocating Freya out of the fjord.

☆ Chess-China's Ding Liren defies odds to become world champion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Alessandro Parodi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 30 (Reuters) - China's Ding Liren was crowned on Sunday as the 17th world chess champion in a tense match against Russian-born Ian Nepomniachtchi in Astana, Kazakhstan, in the last chapter of an odds-defying sequence of events. "One Ding to rule em all," fellow grandmaster Anish Giri wrote on Twitter in honour of the new champion. Ding's triumph means China holds both the men's and women's world titles, with current women's champion Ju Wenjun set to defend her title against compatriot Lei Tingjie in July. "The moment Ian resigned the game was a very emotional moment, I cannot control my feelings," the new world champion said in a press conference. Carlsen said he was not motivated to play shortly after Nepomniachtchi won the Candidates tournament, the prestigious qualifier to the match.

☆ Tate Modern Finds Its New Director in Norway
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alex Marshall | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Karin Hindsbo, the director of Norway’s recently opened National Museum, was on Friday named the new director of Tate Modern in London, one of the world’s most popular museums. Hindsbo, a Danish-born art historian, will take on the role in September, replacing Frances Morris, who has led Tate Modern since 2016. Last October, Morris announced she was leaving to focus on curatorial projects, and to work on addressing the art world’s climate impacts. The directorship of Tate Modern is one of the European art world’s highest-profile roles, with the museum expected to regularly stage blockbuster exhibitions of contemporary and modern art. Under Morris’s leadership, it’s hosted acclaimed shows including a sold-out Cézanne retrospective, a career-spanning exhibition of the British artist Steve McQueen’s video pieces and an exploration of work by African American artists during the civil rights era.

☆ Carbon capture project in Norway temporarily halted by high costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Nora Buli | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"New cost calculations show that we cannot implement the original plans for the carbon capture project within the existing budget," Knut Inderhaug, head of project operator Hafslund Oslo Celsio, said in a statement. Investment costs for the Klemetsrud waste plant, which are being subsidised by both the Oslo city council and the Norwegian government, were initially set at 5.5 billion Norwegian crowns ($518.88 million). Celsio was also in contact with municipal and state stakeholders over how best to realise the project. The CO2 captured at Klemetsrud is part of Norway's prestigious Longship carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, which also includes carbon capture at a cement plant and the Northern Lights transport and storage project. Klemetsrud was expected to capture round 400,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, corresponding to 14% of Oslo's overall emissions of greenhouse gases.

☆ Chess-World championship contender faces purported leak of his preparation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 20 (Reuters) - Chess grandmasters and other players said a secret online account has been found of world championship contender Ding Liren's preparation as he trails by a point in his match in Astana, Kazakhstan, against Russian-born Ian Nepomniachtchi. The first player to gain 7.5 points will win the match and a prize of 2 million euros ($2.19 million). Ding would have used a burner account on the website Lichess.org to prepare for the match with his trainers, several players said. The account, created on Feb. 14, features new opening ideas which Ding unveiled in the match. "Ding has to deal with the fallout of his 'anonymous' pre-match training games being discovered online," chess publication Chess24 reported.

☆ Weapons firm says it can't meet soaring demand for artillery shells because a TikTok data center is eating all the electricity
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Lindsay Dodgson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An arms manufacturer complained that TikTok's data center is using all the electricity in the region. However, in the area of Norway where Nammo operates, its defense work gets no priority over any other users of electricity. The energy company told the FT that it has no spare capacity for Nammo to hike its output as it has been promised to TikTok. It found that data centers can often require the "same amount of energy as a large town," and could account for "29% of electricity demand in Ireland by 2028." TikTok also has plans to build what will be the largest data center campus in Norway by November 2023.

☆ A deadline looms for rules governing deep-sea mining, but a rushed decision may be risky
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Proponents say that deep-sea mining there is a less damaging way to gather metals like nickel, copper, manganese and cobalt. Opponents of deep-sea mining say there is not enough information to make that kind of decision. Critics of the idea of deep-sea mining have said the process is being rushed. That's what's behind the drive for diversity of supply on land-based mining, as well as exploration of alternatives such as deep-sea mining." Finding consensus for the Wild West of the seaOpponents of deep-sea mining want to tap the brakes.

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