Oil and gas production from Norway, one of Europe's top producers, was faltered by maintenance in December, but finished higher than 2016, national data show.

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, the nation's energy regulator, reported that preliminary data show total daily production from December averaged 1.54 million barrels of oil, 363,000 barrels of natural gas liquids and 31,000 barrels of condensate, a super light form of oil. For oil, production was about 4 percent below expectations for December.

"The main reasons that production in December was below forecast is that Goliat was closed until the Dec. 17 and technical problems and maintenance work on some other fields," the regulator stated.

Goliat, operated in the Barents Sea by Italian energy company Eni was shut down briefly by Norwegian regulators starting in November because of safety concerns.

Apart from Russia, Norway is the top oil and natural gas supplier for the European economy, putting nearly all of its offshore production on the export market. Total production last year, including the preliminary figures from December, was 37.7 million barrels of oil equivalent higher than 2016.

State-owned natural gas shipper Gassco said last year set a record for deliveries to European and British buyers of Norwegian natural gas. The annual shipment of natural gas through the Norwegian pipeline system to continental Europe was 8 percent higher last year than in 2016, setting a record for its 40 year history.

An auction earlier this month for new offshore access was record-setting for Norway, with 75 licenses awarded total in the Barents, North and Norwegian Seas. Licenses were spread out among small and international majors. The NPD said that, in order for Norway to maintain its reputation as a major production, future exploration and production activity needed to increase, both from frontier and mature basins.

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