Offshore Northern Seas (ONS) 2026 Stavanger: programme, opening hours, exhibitors and major events

About Offshore Northern Seas (ONS) 2026

Stavanger has hosted ONS since 1974 and the biennial event has developed from its North Sea petroleum roots into a much wider global energy forum. The 2026 theme, Courage, reflects an agenda shaped by energy security, geopolitical uncertainty, investment decisions, technological disruption and the challenge of reducing emissions without undermining security of supply.

ONS uses the previous edition's 72,676 visitors, more than 1,100 exhibitors, more than 1,150 speakers and participation from 102 countries as an indication of the event's international scale. The 2026 exhibition again brings more than a thousand companies to Stavanger, ranging from global operators and engineering groups to renewable-energy developers, technology providers and growth companies.

Oil and gas remain a major part of ONS, but the programme extends across offshore wind, hydrogen, batteries, solar power, geothermal energy, carbon capture and storage, nuclear power, biogas, maritime decarbonisation, artificial intelligence, subsea systems, drilling, digital operations and decommissioning.

Venues and exhibition hours

• Main exhibition: Stavanger Forum, Gunnar Warebergsgate 13, Stavanger, Norway.
• Strategic Conference: primarily at Clarion Hotel Energy.
• ONS+: evening debates, networking and entertainment across downtown Stavanger.
• Monday 24 August: 09:30-17:30.
• Tuesday 25 August: 09:30-17:30.
• Wednesday 26 August: 09:30-17:30.
• Thursday 27 August: 09:30-15:00.

Several programmes run simultaneously. Key arenas include the Strategic Conference, Technical Sessions in Hall 5, Centre Court, Net Zero Markets, Scale-Ups, ONS Young and the International Markets programme developed with NORWEP.

Monday 24 August

• 07:00-09:00: Strategic Conference activities begin at Clarion Hotel Energy.
• 09:30-17:30: exhibition halls open at Stavanger Forum.
• 10:00-12:30: International Markets opening, NORWEP Awards and networking lunch.
• 10:00-10:30: Centre Court discussion examining Europe's position in a new geopolitical environment.
• 10:00-10:45: parallel ONS Young sessions on the transition, energy security and new approaches to the industry's future.
• 11:00-13:00: official Opening Ceremony at Energy Hall, including an address by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
• 11:15-12:15: Net Zero Markets sessions on industrial AI and digitalisation, early movers in the energy transition and the economic consequences of failing to reach net-zero objectives.
• 12:30-13:30: discussions on clean-energy geopolitics, industrial demand and the financing of lower-carbon products.
• 13:00-15:00: Technical Sessions on accelerating projects from discovery to production and on industrial digitalisation.
• 13:00-14:30: presentations by ONS Innovation Awards finalists.
• 13:00-15:00: International Markets solutions programme.
• 15:00-15:50: Strategic Conference debate on how AI is reshaping energy.
• 15:00-15:50: Atlantic Council cooperation session on the changing international order and new alliances.
• 15:25-15:50: Leadership Dialogue with Ørsted CEO Rasmus Errboe.
• 15:45-16:30: parallel sessions on geothermal applications, AI-enabled hydropower and renewable-energy resilience.
• 16:00-16:50: Strategic Conference discussion exploring whether the next energy era will be dominated by renewables, nuclear power or emerging technologies.
• 16:00-16:25: Leadership Dialogue with Øyvind Eriksen of Aker ASA.
• 16:30-16:55: Leadership Dialogue with Greg Jackson.

ONS+ begins across downtown Stavanger from around 17:00, with discussions covering energy markets, European security, political risk, AI and the cost of the transition. The Energy Garden remains open until 23:00.

The formal opening day ends with the ONS Opening Concert at Stavanger Concert Hall. A networking reception starts at 18:30, the concert begins at 19:30 and the scheduled finish is 21:00.

Tuesday 25 August

• 07:00-09:00: Strategic Conference morning programme.
• 08:00-09:30: Ramboll Executive Breakfast.
• 09:30-17:30: exhibition open throughout the day.
• 10:00-12:00: Technical Sessions on field development, advanced drilling and subsea innovation.
• 10:00-11:00: sessions examining European CCS regulation, offshore wind and battery infrastructure.
• 10:00-11:00: Strategic Conference debate on breakthrough ideas capable of changing the energy trilemma.
• 10:00-10:30: Leadership Dialogue with Nicolai Tangen.
• 10:30-11:00: Leadership Dialogue with Kirk Johnson.
• 11:30-12:30: sessions on mobilising capital for the transition and securing access to strategic components, minerals and energy.
• 11:30-12:00: Leadership Dialogue with Kpler's Amena Bakr.
• 12:00-12:30: Leadership Dialogue with Morten Wierød.
• 12:15-13:45: ONS Safety Lunch.
• 13:00-15:00: Technical Sessions on next-generation subsurface work and collaborative development of marginal fields.
• 14:00-15:00: Strategic discussions on Arctic resources and geopolitics and on the global climate position in 2026.
• 14:45-15:30: investment sessions covering CCS, offshore wind and batteries.
• 15:30-16:30: debates on potentially transformative energy technologies and the relationship between warfare and energy supply.
• 15:30-16:00: Leadership Dialogue with DNB's Kjerstin Braathen.
• 16:00-16:30: Leadership Dialogue with Siemens Energy CEO Christian Bruch.

ONS+ continues after the exhibition closes, with public and professional events covering seabed minerals, artificial intelligence, European small modular reactors, employment and energy-transition policy.

Wednesday 26 August

• 07:00-09:00: Strategic Conference morning programme.
• 09:30-17:30: exhibition open.
• 10:00-12:00: Technical Sessions on grids and green fuels, operational AI and the future of marine operations.
• 10:00-11:00: sessions on hydrogen in Europe's energy mix, solar power, public acceptance and financing the European energy system.
• 11:30-12:30: Strategic Conference discussions on hard-to-abate industries and public trust in the transition.
• 12:15-12:45: Improved Recovery Award 2026.
• 13:00-15:00: technical programme on field-development innovation, collaborative data systems and new technology across the CCS value chain.
• 14:00-15:00: strategic sessions on leadership during uncertainty and energy's role in international power politics.
• 14:00-17:00: Equinor Global Supplier Day 2026.
• 15:30-16:30: discussions on building a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system and whether today's transformation represents addition, transition or substitution.
• 15:30-16:00: Leadership Dialogue with Lynn Loo.
• 16:00-19:00: Young Professionals Arena.
• 17:30-19:15: ONS+ Global Relay for Life.
• 20:00-22:30: free ONS Concert at Torget in central Stavanger.

The public concert features two major Norwegian artists. Arif is scheduled from 20:00 to 21:00, followed by internationally known electronic artist Matoma from approximately 21:30 to 22:30.

Thursday 27 August

• 08:40-09:30: Apprentice Day plenary.
• 09:30-15:00: final exhibition day.
• 09:30-12:00: geothermal-energy programme addressing industrial opportunities, local resilience and exports.
• 09:45-11:40: CCS Operator Tour including TotalEnergies at stand 1075.
• 09:45-11:40: CCS Technology Tour including Shell at stand 1090.
• 10:00-12:00: Technical Sessions covering decommissioning and well abandonment, research-led innovation and technologies for net zero.
• 10:00-14:00: Green Shipping Conference.
• 10:00-14:00: Biogas Conference.
• From 10:00: dedicated nuclear-energy conference programme.
• 11:45-13:40: CCS project tour including Northern Lights at stand 4250.
• 12:45-13:30: session on accelerating deployment in countries entering the nuclear-energy market.
• 13:00-13:30: Best Stand Awards ceremony.
• 13:15-14:00: Green Shipping session on moving technologies from demonstration to commercial markets.
• 13:30-14:15: discussion on the electricity requirements of the AI economy and whether power grids can keep pace.
• 15:00: exhibition closes.

Exhibitors and companies to watch

The complete directory contains more than one thousand exhibitors and can be explored through the official ONS app and exhibition map. Companies visibly represented in the official programme include Shell, TotalEnergies, Equinor, ABB, Aibel, Northern Lights, Ramboll, Siemens Energy, Aker, Ørsted and DNB, alongside hundreds of suppliers, engineering companies, technology businesses, renewable-energy developers, start-ups and scale-ups.

Specific locations published in the programme include TotalEnergies at stand 1075, Shell at stand 1090 and Northern Lights at stand 4250. ABB sponsors one of the principal Net Zero Markets stages, while Equinor hosts its Global Supplier Day on Wednesday.

Innovation and technology

Artificial intelligence is one of the strongest cross-cutting themes at Offshore Northern Seas (ONS) 2026. Sessions consider industrial AI, automated insight, digital subsurface work, hydropower optimisation, physical AI, collaborative data platforms and the growing electricity requirements created by AI infrastructure.

The ONS Innovation Awards also provide a showcase for new technology. Ten finalists were selected from 88 candidates. SME finalists announced by ONS include Enerin, Imenco Future Technologies, Roofit.Solar, Hystar and Elbits, with finalist presentations scheduled for Monday afternoon.

Why ONS matters internationally

ONS combines a large commercial exhibition with strategic discussion involving political leaders, energy executives, investors and technical specialists. Participants connected with the 2026 programme include Ursula von der Leyen, Rasmus Errboe, Christian Bruch, Anders Opedal, Patrick Pouyanné and Lynn Loo.

This combination of business meetings, industrial technology, investment, geopolitics and public events explains why Stavanger becomes one of the central meeting points of the global energy industry during ONS week.