Equinor Halts Visund Platform Output After Electrical Fire

Emergency crews extinguished the flames shortly after they were detected before 11 a.m. local time, and no injuries were reported among the 128 workers on site. Following the incident, Equinor transferred between 70 and 80 staff members to nearby installations to ensure safety. While the immediate danger has passed, the facility remains offline as technical teams assess the damage to power distribution panels. Spokesperson Ellen Maria Skjelsbæk confirmed that repairs are required, though the timeline for resuming operations remains uncertain.

The outage adds to a series of unplanned disruptions across the Norwegian shelf. Gas system operator Gassco reported that capacity at Visund dropped to zero for Thursday’s gas day, compounding existing supply constraints at the Åsgard, Oseberg, and Troll fields. Visund, which has operated since 1999, is a critical node in the Kvitebjørn pipeline network, transporting gas to the Kollsnes processing plant for European distribution. In 2025, the field contributed 5.1 billion cubic meters to the export market. Equinor operates the asset with a 53.2% stake, supported by partners Petoro, ConocoPhillips, and Repsol.