The Norwegian continental shelf ( no, Den norske kontinentalsokkelen) (abbreviated as NCS) is the

continental shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...

over which

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

exercises sovereign rights as defined by the

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 c ...

. The area of the shelf is four times the area of Norway mainland and constitutes about one-third of the Europe continental shelf. It is rich in

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...

and

gas Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma). A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...

and it is the base of the petroleum

economy of Norway The economy of Norway is a highly developed mixed economy with state-ownership in strategic areas. Although sensitive to global business cycles, the economy of Norway has shown robust growth since the start of the industrial era. The country ...

References

External links

Interactive Map over the Norwegian Continental Shelf
live information, facts, pictures and videos.
Norwegian Government "Continental shelf – questions and answers"
Continental shelves of Europe Landforms of Norway Landforms of the North Sea Geology of the North Sea Petroleum in Norway {{norway-geo-stub