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As the Norwegian continental shelf is maturing, the interest from major international companies is falling. New and smaller players that will have to take over do not have the same credit ratings as the majors, and will thus have to finance their investment activities at a higher interest rate. Additionally, the petroleum industry is characterized by large up-front investments, which forces new players to carry losses forward until they have production on stream. This reduces the value of a project, as the interest rate charged by creditors is much higher than the loss carry forward rate given by the state. Allowing companies to pledge their tax balance will reduce the interest cost, and lower the barriers of entry. Based on the regulations in the Petroleum Tax Act, the cash flow of investments was modeled. Historic numbers and projections of future investments were used to find an applicable investment level. It was assumed that companies could finance the majority of the tax value of investments with debt. Applying an estimate for the industry’s weighted average interest rate provided the interest cost per annum. The value of allowing companies to pledge tax allowances was estimated by adjusting the interest rate to a level representative for secured debt. The model gave an annual interest cost of NOK 7.30 bn. before tax. Tax deductions of interest costs were calculated to be approximately 60 percent, giving an after tax cost of NOK 2.82 bn. After adjusting the interest rate, the interest cost was reduced by NOK 860 mm. This is a reduction of 11.77 percent, with the state receiving NOK 528 mm. and the industry NOK 332 mm. after tax. The Norwegian state is already by law obliged to pay out the remaining depreciation of investments, even if extractive business is ceased. The state would receive the majority of the reduced interest costs through increased tax revenue. More important, cheaper funding costs can help ensure that petroleum activity in Norway is continued in the years to come. Reducing the barriers of entry to the continental shelf could lead to less reliable developments and impose a greater risk for the state, which has to be weighed against the lower interest costs. nhhmas

For å i størst mulig grad oppnå samfunnsøkonomisk optimal ressursallokering, er nøytralitet i bedriftsbeskatningen en ønskelig egenskap. Grunnrente er en renprofitt som har sitt opphav i bruk av en begrenset naturressurs som innsatsfaktor i produksjon av goder. Denne representerer et attraktivt skattegrunnlag, da det er mulig å utforme nøytrale skatter på bedrifters renprofitt. Store andeler av dagens produksjonsanlegg i vannkraftsektoren nærmer seg slutten på teknisk og økonomisk levetid, og sektoren står ovenfor betydelige investeringsbehov. Til tross for stor enighet innad i myndighetsorganer om at grunnrenteskatten er nøytralt utformet, hevder kraftbransjeaktører at sektoren er kraftig overbeskattet og at dette hindrer samfunnsøkonomisk lønnsomme investeringer i å bli gjennomført. Denne utredningen har tatt utgangspunkt i en modell for analyse av skatters nøytralitet ovenfor investeringsbeslutninger i petroleumssektoren, og tilpasset modellen til de særlige hensyn som finnes i kraftskatteregimet. Våre undersøkelser viser at grunnrenteskatten samsvarer godt med teori om nøytral beskatning. Grunnrenteskatten virker å være teoretisk korrekt utformet, og kan defineres som en nøytral skatt. Beregning av marginale realavkastningskrav viser at en kraftbransjeaktør opplever kraftskatteregimet som betydelig overbeskattende, mens myndighetene opplever det som tilnærmet nøytralt. Hovedårsaken til denne forskjellen er ulik verdsettelse av skattefradragene. Grunnrenteskatten er utformet med grunnlag i teori som forutsetter at skattefradrag vil anses som en sikker kontantstrøm, og at bransjeaktører vil benytte delkontantstrømsdiskontering. I realiteten rapporterer kraftinvestorer og –selskaper at de benytter standard nettonåverdimetode, og behandler skattefradrag som en risikoutsatt kontantstrøm. Det er kraftbransjeaktørene som tar investeringsbeslutningene. En konsekvens av for lav verdsettelse av skattefradragene fra investors side, og manglende hensyn til faktisk investoradferd fra myndighetenes side, kan være at samfunnsøkonomisk marginale og inframarginale vannkraftinvesteringer utsettes eller skrinlegges. Dette vil være svært uheldig, sett i lys av vannkraftinvesteringenes tidssensitive natur. nhhmas

The aim of this thesis is to give an overview over the salmon farming industry in Norway. It presents some theory around production- and investment costs associated with land basedand sea based fish farming, as well as challenges around environmental issues, technology, fish feed etc. Several production concepts such as open cages in the sea, cages offshore, closed operations in the sea, both exposed and protected and land based production sites are available today, and the characteristics and issues associated with them are discussed. Important is also the production process – from birth to slaughtering. Especially the field of slaughtering is of noticeable importance since there are in general a widespread usage of inhumane slaughter methods. A vast amount of salmon produced throughout the world are killed with little or no consideration for their welfare. In a daily operation of a production site a necessary component is fish feed. It does not only help the salmon to grow, but also adds omega-3 and other important ingredients beneficial to consumers. As any other field within fish farming it is dynamic and constantly changing to meet requirements. Crucial ingredients that made up a huge proportion of the feed a few years ago have to yield for other substitutes. In the analysis of how Norway’s position as a leading country within aquaculture could be challenged a three – step model can be applied. In the first step the current production concepts’ possibilities will be evaluated along the possibility of technological success and what circumstances in society that can influence these concepts. In the second step the economic side of the concepts is evaluated. In the last step, the possibility of success based on previous factors will be summed up, and how this will inflict the Norwegian fish farming industry and whether the new technology can threaten the position and competitiveness of Norway’s industry. nhhmas