Equinor’s Hammerfest LNG plant, located in Arctic Northern Norway, has been forced to shut down for a week following a critical compressor failure, the company announced on Thursday. The facility, also known as Melkoeya LNG, accounts for about 5% of Norway’s total natural gas exports, making it a significant contributor to Europe’s energy supply.

The issue arose when a compressor responsible for re-injecting CO2 extracted from the gas stream back into the ground experienced an unexpected malfunction. In response, Equinor decided to halt production, prioritizing safety and expediting the necessary repairs.

“The repair is expected to take a week,” an Equinor spokesperson confirmed as per the several media reports. Production is projected to resume by late evening on January 9, according to a statement posted on the Gassco regulatory website.

The Hammerfest LNG plant has the capacity to deliver around 6.5 billion cubic meters of gas annually, sufficient to meet the energy needs of approximately 6.5 million European households. It processes gas from the Snoehvit field, located 143 kilometers offshore in the Barents Sea, and is jointly owned by Equinor, Petoro, TotalEnergies, Vaar Energi, and Harbour Energy.

This outage highlights the plant’s critical role in Europe’s energy security, especially as the continent increasingly relies on Norwegian gas exports. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Europe has significantly reduced its dependence on Russian energy supplies, turning to Norway as a key alternative. Norway has since become Europe’s largest natural gas supplier, with most of its exports transported through an offshore pipeline network in the North Sea.

The temporary shutdown of the Hammerfest LNG plant underscores the challenges of maintaining a stable energy supply in a time of geopolitical uncertainty. While the outage is not expected to have long-term effects, it underscores the vulnerability of Europe’s energy infrastructure to technical disruptions.

Equinor and its partners remain focused on swiftly resolving the issue to minimize the impact on gas exports. As energy demand continues to rise during the winter months, the plant’s return to operation will be critical for ensuring sufficient gas supplies to European markets. This incident serves as a reminder of the delicate balance required to sustain energy security amid ongoing geopolitical and technical challenges.