The Norwegian Government has announced a $90 million (£55.9 million) scheme to keep its energy-intensive users in the country.

Norway’s Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference yesterday that the energy-intensive manufacturing industry would be compensated for higher electricity prices.

He said: “The purpose is to prevent Norwegian manufacturing industry from moving their enterprises to countries with less strict climate regulations. The scheme will ease the burden for the power intensive industry and will ensure that a good climate policy is combined with a good industrial policy.”

The move follows changes made to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) starting next year, under which member states will be able to compensate big energy users for costs linked to carbon emissions in an effort prevent higher costs driving business out of Europe.

Stein Lier-Hansen, Head of the Federation of Norwegian Industries said: “We must stop Norwegian and European industry moving to countries, for instance in Asia, which have no active climate policy… The EU is the only region that trades quotas across borders and has said that as long as the entire world doesn’t do that, we must compensate companies to avoid them moving out, which would just increase global emissions.”

The scheme covers 15 sectors, including manufacturers of aluminium, iron and chemicals.

Last month Australia announced its decision to link its carbon pricing scheme with the EU.