Tag Archives: Coronavirus

Norwegian Air may not survive the pandemic

London (CNN Business)Norwegian Air wanted to bring a low-cost business model to transatlantic flights. It’s quickly running out of runway.
 
The coronavirus pandemic and travel restrictions have forced Norwegian Air to ground the vast majority of its fleet, and furlough almost all of its workers. The heavily indebted carrier’s stock has collapsed, and its cash reserves are nearly exhausted.
 
“Norwegian is dependent on additional working capital in order to continue operating through the first quarter of 2021 and beyond,” the airline said Tuesday as it reported its latest financial results.
 
One potential rescuer has already turned its back on the airline that once had ambitions to repeat Ryanair’s (RYAAY) short-haul success on longer routes. Norwegian Air said on Monday that the Norwegian government has ruled out providing it with more financial assistance, leaving the carrier in what it described as a “challenging situation.”
 
Read the full article here.

Royal Norwegian Embassy: New Travel Restrictions to Norway

Norway introduces new restrictions on travel from Monday 9th of November. Requirements for testing upon arrival are being introduced and travellers may be placed in quarantine hotels after entry to the country.

Norway introduces new restrictions on travel from Monday 9th of November. Requirements for testing upon arrival are being introduced and travellers may be placed in quarantine hotels after entry to the country.

The Office of the Prime Minister has released a press statement that outlines new measures to contain the outbreak of COVID-19. Read the full press statement here.

We expect these rules and requirements to be updated in the coming days. Make sure you get the latest information from regjeringen.no before you travel to Norway.

Those who plan to travel to Norway should be aware of the following requirements:

  • Work travellers who have been in an area where the level of infection is particularly high during the 10-day period before their arrival in Norway will no longer be able to be exempted from the duty of quarantine during work hours on the basis of undergoing a test for Covid-19 once every three days, see Section 6c of the Covid-19 regulations. The general requirement to go into quarantine on entry to Norway will therefore apply in principle to all workers arriving from these areas.
  • For workers who may make use of the exemption from the duty of quarantine set out in Section 6c of the Covid-19 regulations, the following amendments to the rules have been made: workers who are allowed to work but must be in quarantine during leisure time are to be tested once every three days and must be given accommodation in a single room for the first 10 days of their stay in Norway. The employer must ensure that it is possible to maintain social distancing when workers are undergoing quarantine during leisure time. There is no longer any exemption to the requirement to go into quarantine on entry to Norway during leisure time.
  • Travellers from red countries must present a certificate of a negative Covid-19 test when they arrive in Norway. The test must have been taken less than 72 hours before entry. If the person does not present such a test, he or she may be refused entry. This will be implemented from midnight, Monday 9 November. (New)

  The requirement will not apply to Norwegians, persons who reside in Norway or persons in transit.

o   The requirement does not apply to people who regularly come to Norway from Sweden and Finland to work.

o   The requirement applies to health personnel who commute to Norway and who have been outside Norway for more than seven days.

o   Personnel with jobs critical to society may be exempted when necessary to avoid danger to life and health.

  • Persons who come to Norway must have a permanent residence in the country, or the employer or client must provide a guarantee of a suitable place of residence upon arrival in Norway. Persons, including tourists and visitors, who do not have their own residence or employer or client in Norway must stay in quarantine hotels and get tested during the quarantine period. This also applies to family members who come to visit relatives in Norway. The Norwegian Directorate of Health has been tasked with studying how these requirements can be introduced. Until this is established, border controls will be strengthened in accordance with existing regulations. (New)

E24: ConocoPhillips krever at ansatte bruker munnbind på kontoret

Oljeselskapet dobler antallet ansatte på kontoret, men setter inn nye tiltak for å hindre koronasmitte.

Tirsdag 20. oktober økte ConocoPhillips bemanningen ved sitt norske hovedkontor i Risavika fra i underkant av 300 til 600.

Samtidig ble det innført krav om bruk av munnbind i fellesområdene på kontoret.

– Vi vet at bruk av munnbind gir økt oppmerksomhet på smittepotensialet og minner oss om at vi fremdeles har en pandemi pågående, noe som igjen er med på å redusere risiko, forklarer pressekontakt Stig S. Kvendseth til Aftenbladet/E24.

E2

Reuters: Norway may have to tighten COVID-19 restrictions, PM says

OSLO (Reuters) – Norway is going to stop easing coronavirus curbs for the moment and could be forced to bring back tougher measures following a recent rise in the number of cases, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Thursday.

Norway went into lockdown in mid-March and quickly saw a sharp fall in new cases, then began a gradual easing of restrictions in May.

“The government is considering tighter measures,” Solberg told a news conference.

Read entire article here

Reuters: Norway PM says will not ease COVID-19 restrictions yet

OSLO (Reuters) – Norway will not yet ease restrictions designed to counter the novel coronavirus even though the spread has been slower recently, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Friday.

“Even if the infection numbers are coming down, we can’t say that we have landed safely yet… we have to be sure that we maintain control,” Solberg told a news conference.

To prevent a resurgence in COVID-19 infections, the country halted its planned easing of restrictions earlier this month, and imposed new measures such a ban on bars to serve alcohol after midnight.

Read entire article here

Forbes: Norway Clamps Down As Coronavirus Cases Rise, Face Masks A Possibility

Following a rise in positive COVID-19 tests over the last two weeks, the Norwegian government has extended its emergency measures and introduced some new restrictions.

Ban on large events, late-night alcohol

The maximum limit of 200 people at events is to be retained, as will the ban on grass-roots sports. There is also a new a nationwide ban on alcohol serving after midnight in bars and pubs until further notice. “There is a connection between alcohol consumption and how you behave,” said Norway’s prime minister Erna Solberg to Dagbladet.

Travelers arriving in Norway from so-called “red” countries will be required to wear face masks until their reach their home. In addition, the government is now advising against all unnecessary travel outside Norway.

Read entire article here

Time Magazine: Erna Solberg on How Norway Is Reopening With Cautious Optimism: ‘We Know Where the Risk Points Are’

When COVID-19 started rapidly spreading throughout Europe in March, Norway was hard hit. But under Prime Minister Erna Solberg’s leadership, the country quickly adopted strict lockdown measures and ramped up testing. Five months later, Norway now enjoys one of the lowest fatality rates in Europe.

“This is the rainiest day Norway has had since the 1930s,” Solberg said during a TIME 100 Talks discussion with International Editor Dan Stewart. “But I think, in a way, we were lucky in the unluck that we had.”

Read the entire interview HERE.

Bloomberg: Masters of $1 Trillion Fund Reap Rewards of a Very Good Idea

In one of the world’s richest countries, the finance minister may soon need to break the spending record he just set.

For Jan Tore Sanner, the 55-year-old who’s been running Norway’s finances since January, that’s not really a problem thanks to a couple of choices his country made a while back.

 

Reuters: Norway pledges $1 billion to vaccines against COVID-19, other diseases

OSLO (Reuters) – Norway will give $1 billion to support the distribution worldwide of any vaccine developed against COVID-19 as well as for vaccines against other diseases, Prime Minister Erna Solberg said on Monday.

Oslo made the pledge as part of a donor conference held on Monday by the European Union to raise 7.5 billion euros ($8.23 billion) towards the testing, treatment and prevention of the respiratory disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Non-EU member Norway is a co-chair of the event as a long-standing donor to global health initiatives.

Read entire article HERE.

Regjeringen: Koronapandemien hovedtema i samtale med Pompeo

Utenriksminister Ine Eriksen Søreide skulle denne uken ha besøkt Washington, D.C. for samtaler med blant andre utenriksminister Mike Pompeo. I stedet møtte hun i dag sin amerikanske kollega til en telefonsamtale.

Håndteringen av Covid-19 var en av hovedsakene i utenriksministerens samtale med Pompeo.

– USA er spesielt hardt rammet av pandemien, men Covid-19 har store konsekvenser for alle land og for det globale fellesskapet. Mitt hovedbudskap til utenriksminister Pompeo var at grenseoverskridende kriser som denne må håndteres gjennom internasjonalt samarbeid. Vi var enige om at fortsatt tett samarbeid mellom allierte vil være av stor betydning i tiden som kommer. Utvikling av vaksiner er høyt prioritert av både Norge og USA. Vi deler bekymringen for desinformasjon og propaganda under Covid-19, sier utenriksministeren. 

Les hele saken HER.