Norway's energy ministry said on Friday it has received applications from 21 oil and gas companies seeking exploration acreage in the government's annual mature-areas (APA) licensing round.
The number of companies rose by one from last year's APA round, as Shell made a comeback after being absent in 2025, the list of applicants showed.
This year's round will contain 70 new blocks or parts of blocks to explore for oil and gas in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea, the government said in May.
Equinor, Aker BP, ConocoPhillips and TotalEnergies were among the companies applying.
"Continued exploration and new discoveries are crucial for Norway to remain a stable supplier of oil and gas," the energy ministry said in a statement.
(Reuters - Reporting by Nora Buli, editing by Terje Solsvik)