Norway wants to halt Rolls-Royce unit sale over security concerns

OSLO: The Norwegian government on Tuesday demanded that Rolls-Royce halt its planned sale of a Norwegian engine maker to a Russian company, saying it might exercise a veto in the name of national security.

Rolls-Royce announced in early February that it would sell Bergen Engines for around 150 million euros ($179 million) to TMH Group, a privately owned company headquartered in Russia that makes locomotives and rail equipment.

But the government said the Norwegian National Security Authority had informed the UK aerospace company that the authority was "considering if the planned sale of Bergen Engines AS to TMH group should be stopped in accordance with the security act."

Bergen Engines, which employs 950 people, has been part of Rolls-Royce since 1999, servicing engines for Norwegian Navy vessels and, according to local media reports, for the top-secret intelligence gathering ship Marjata.

"The government has been studying this matter for the last months, and it can't be eliminated that the sale of Bergen engines to TMH Group can risk national security interests," Justice Minister Monica Maeland said in a statement.

"There is therefore a need to halt this process to gather sufficient information to evaluate the transaction," she added.