Melkøya
Island in Hammerfest, Norway
title: "Melkøya" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["islands-of-finnmark", "hammerfest-municipality"] description: "Island in Hammerfest, Norway" topic_path: "general/islands-of-finnmark" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melkøya" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Island in Hammerfest, Norway ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox islands"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | |
| image_name | Melkøya-2006.JPG |
| location | Finnmark, Norway |
| coordinates | |
| area_km2 | 0.69 |
| length_km | 1.6 |
| width_m | 810 |
| elevation_m | 71 |
| country | Norway |
| country_admin_divisions_title | County |
| country_admin_divisions | Finnmark |
| country_admin_divisions_title_1 | Municipality |
| country_admin_divisions_1 | Hammerfest Municipality |
| :: |
|name = |native_name = |native_name_link = |sobriquet = |image_name = Melkøya-2006.JPG |image_size = |image_caption = |image_alt = |location = Finnmark, Norway |coordinates = |archipelago = |area_km2 = 0.69 |rank = |length_km = 1.6 |width_m = 810 |coastline_km = |elevation_m = 71 |highest_mount = |country = Norway |country_admin_divisions_title = County |country_admin_divisions = Finnmark |country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Municipality |country_admin_divisions_1 = Hammerfest Municipality |population = |population_as_of = |density_km2 = |density_footnotes =
no or se is an island in Hammerfest Municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The 0.69 km2 island is connected to the town of Hammerfest (on the neighbouring island of Kvaløya to the west) by the 2,316 metres-long Melkøysund Tunnel, which was completed in 2003.
The industrial island is the endpoint of the undersea pipeline that transports natural gas from the Snøhvit natural gas fields in the Barents Sea. The gas goes through the 168 km long pipeline to the processing plant Hammerfest LNG on Melkøya where 18 million cubic metres per day is converted into liquefied natural gas. The plant opened in 2007 and is operated by Equinor. After a fire closed the plant in 2020, it re-opened in 2022. Liquefied natural gas is then exported from Melkøya to world markets by a LNG gas carrier or tanker. The plant emitted 0.9 million tonnes of in 2023.
In Q2 2025, media started reporting about some incidents and accidents in regard to gas leaks and worker safety. In July 2025, for the first time, a worker spoke without anonymity, about one of the incidents [at the LNG terminal]. Media has later reported about two cases, of workers that lost their work with employment agency, after having spoken with media about safety issues. Equinor does not have a procedure for getting its employees [or subcontractor]s quickly to a doctor, when gas leaks happen.
History
The island was previously used for farming, and rental houses for seasonal fishermen were also built on the island.
In 2001 and 2002, major archaeological investigations on Melkøya were undertaken before Statoil's development of the island began. The development of the island has changed Melkøya completely. On 21 August 2007, the gas from the Snøhvit field began flowing to Melkøya.
The endangered black-legged kittiwake adopted a man-made cliff at the facility for nesting, making it one of the largest kittiwake colonies in the world.
Media gallery
Melkoya.jpg|Evening view of the island Melkøya winter4.jpg|View in winter Hammerfest dusk LNG.jpg|View of the Hammerfest area, including Melkøya Melkøy3 winter.jpg|View of the storage tanks 11-06-07 016 LPG Tanker VICTORIA KOSAN loading LNG at Melkøya.jpg|LPG tanker waiting to load liquefied natural gas at Melkøya.
References
References
- "Informasjon om stadnamn". [[Norwegian Mapping Authority.
- Store norske leksikon. "Melkøya".
- (September 28, 2020). "Situation under control at Melkøya".
- (2 June 2022). "Norway LNG Plant Resumes Output, Boosting Gas Exports".
- (6 May 2025). "Ikke flertall for å stanse elektrifisering av Melkøya". [[Teknisk Ukeblad]].
- 'Gerhard Nelsen breathed gases'. https://www.vg.no/nyheter/i/LMzWE4/gerhard-nelson-fikk-i-seg-gass-paa-melkoeya-skulle-vaere-trygt. VG.no. Retrieved 2025-07-04
- 'Gerhard spoke about the gases at Melkøya—three hours later he was removed from work'. https://www.vg.no/nyheter/i/4BaRLe/gerrd-fortalte-om-gassen-paa-melkoeya-tre-timer-senere-ble-han-fjernet-fra-jobben. VG.no. Retrieved 2025-07-06
- https://www.vg.no/nyheter/i/OoKWgl/melkoeya-utsatt-for-gass-paa-jobben-prioriterte-sveler-foer-blodproever. VG.no. Retrieved 2025-07-11
- [https://artsdatabanken.no/Rodliste2015/rodliste2015/Norge/3705 Norsk rødliste for arter: Rissa tridactyla]
- [https://www.nrk.no/tromsogfinnmark/her-er-fuglefjellet-til-50-milliarder-kroner-1.12429007 Her er fuglefjellet til 50 milliarder kroner]
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