Röyksopp to play at Ormen Lange opening

OPEN FOR ALL: Röyksopp, Ane Brun and 350 young chorus singers from the county of Møre and Romsdal will be among the live acts on the programme. Photo: Jon Hauge/Scanpix

(July 18, 2007) The world's largest – and possibly most breathtaking – multimedia show will form the backdrop for the celebration when Hydro invites its partners and the local population to the opening gala for the Ormen Lange field, at the Aker football stadium in Molde on October 6, 2007.

Röyksopp, Ane Brun and 350 young chorus singers from the county of Møre and Romsdal will be among the live acts on the programme — to be shown on a 360-degree big screen, covering the entire public stand in the stadium. The screen will be almost 5000 square metres in size.

Norway’s King Harald will participate in the actual opening ceremony at Ormen Lange’s land-based facility at Nyhamna in Aukra municipality. The ceremony will be transmitted to the big screen at Aker stadium, so that all guests will be able to follow the official part of the event.

One of Norway's best-known bands, the duo Röyksopp from the town of Tromsø, has agreed to play at the event in Molde, and will be presenting new music.

“We hope that young and old, industry and inhabitants alike in Møre and Romsdal will take part in celebrating an important milestone in Norwegian industrial history,” says project director for the Ormen Lange development, Tom Røtjer. Ormen Lange is Norway’s largest industrial development ever.

The Tromsø duo Röyksopp — incontestably one of Norway’s most internationally renowned bands – has promised to play new music at the event in Molde, according to Hanne Haugen, responsible for brand management in Hydro. Ane Brun, the town of Molde’s own successful singer and songwriter, will be joined by chorus singers from local sixth form colleges in Volda, Kristiansund, Molde and Ålesund.

“There will be entertainment for all tastes, and it will be a tremendous show. We are hoping to fill the stadium,” Haugen says.

SURROUND SOUND: A 360-degree screen 5000 square metres in size will surround the entire public stand in the stadium. Photo: Gyro Event

The gas field Ormen Lange, off the coast of Møre and Romsdal, was discovered by Hydro in 1997. Ten years later, Hydro – The gas field Ormen Lange, off the coast of Møre and Romsdal, was discovered by Hydro in 1997. Ten years later, Hydro – as operator for the development phase – is in the final stages of completing the project. The project will be finished in October, within the parameters set in the Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) that was approved by a unanimous Norwegian Parliament, the Storting, in 2004. 

“Ormen Lange has become a success story for its owners and for the Norwegian petroleum industry – not least thanks to the close cooperation between the operator, project partners, supplier industry and service industry,” Røtjer comments. 

“Good cooperation is also the hallmark of our relationship to the inhabitants and representatives of Aukra municipality and the county of Møre and Romsdal. We want the opening celebration to reflect this, and that is why we are inviting so many people in the region,” he says. 

The event at Aker stadium on October 6 will be free and open to all.