Protests against student grant cuts

The latest Bergen / Vestland news from the past 48 hours: a folkehøgskole student protest brought participants from across the county to Bergen on Monday, opposing the planned reduction in the share of student loans that can be converted into grants (NRK Bergen / Vestland). The city has also designated 8 information points for emergencies, while construction of the Stad sea tunnel began in Kjøde (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Bergen / Vestland news: mobilisation against grant cuts

On Monday, drums echoed during the protest at Den blå steinen in central Bergen. Students from folkehøgskoler across Vestland county came with one demand: stop the plan to reduce grants. Previously, students had protested in Oslo, Trondheim and Stavanger (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Today, a student completing a year at a folkehøgskole can convert 40 % of their loan into a grant. The government wants to reduce this rate to 15 %. In practice, a year at a folkehøgskole could cost each student around NOK 40,000 more (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

“Not everyone can afford to attend a folkehøgskole. Making it more expensive does not help,” says Grace Ntawindi Katalunya, who came from Manger folkehøgskule to protest. She is supported by her classmate Marit Hekneby Forberg, who says a folkehøgskole is “something completely different from other programmes” (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Emergency preparations: 8 information points in Bergen

Bergen municipality is now designating 8 major venues around the city as gathering places where residents can obtain information. The system must work if the internet and mobile network go down. “The world looks different now. We must be prepared to face crises,” says newly appointed mayor Chris Jørgen Rødland of Høyre (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

“We must take the preparedness situation seriously. And situations may arise in which these centres will play an important role, for example if the electricity fails,” he adds. The 8 centres are spread across different neighbourhoods, including Grieghallen in Bergenhus, Bergenshallen in Årstad, Åsane kulturhus, Fana kulturhus, Oasen kjøpesenter in Fyllingsdalen and Vestkanten senter in Laksevåg (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Infrastructure: work begins on the Stad sea tunnel

Monday marked a milestone for the Stad sea tunnel. After 10 years of discussions, machinery entered the village of Kjøde. It is to demolish the buildings in the tunnel’s path. The next 5 years will be marked by construction work, and the villages at either end of the tunnel will be unrecognisable (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

“It is probably painful for those living in the area that houses are being demolished and the village will be changed forever,” says Sveinung Nedregotten of Kystverket. In the long term, sailors will have a safe passage through the treacherous Stadhavet. “There has been a lot of discussion and back and forth, but today is definitely a step forward. It feels like an important milestone to be on our way,” he adds (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

The Stad tunnel will be about 50 metres high and 36 metres wide. Billions of kroner will be invested in the project in Vestland county (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Economy: Nordic Mining suspends the Førdefjorden mine

After several decades of environmental debate and court proceedings, mining began at Førdefjorden just before Christmas 2025. The company has already run out of cash, and negotiations to find new capital have stalled. On Monday morning, Nordic Mining announced that it was suspending operations and pulling the emergency brake, with a risk of bankruptcy (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

Oslo Børs reported acute uncertainty surrounding the company, making the share’s true value difficult to assess. Around 110 employees face an uncertain future. The leading union representative, Frode Tefre, says the employees are concerned and that the situation affects not only those working at the site, but also their families (NRK Bergen / Vestland ; The Local Norway).

Climate: lower Supphellebreen has disappeared

The lower Supphellebreen, a regenerated glacier between 3,000 and 4,000 years old, has completely disappeared since summer. Located in Fjærland in Sogn, Vestland county, it was described by Store norske leksikon as one of the most beautiful arms of Jostedalsbreen and the lowest-reaching in Southern Norway, at just 60 metres above sea level (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

“I was there in July and some remnants were still left, but when I went on 1 October, the glacier had completely disappeared,” explains researcher Thorben Dunse from HVL. The lower glacier was formed by ice falling from Flatbreen and Supphellebreen higher up. Last century, it covered several square kilometres before melting over the following decades (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

📌 Local briefs

Two young men are being prosecuted for an attempted armed Vipps robbery in Bergen during the night from Sunday to Monday. According to the police, they tried to threaten the victim to obtain NOK 40,000; the targeted person was able to get out of the car unaided (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

On Monday, an inflatable flood barrier was installed at Bryggen due to a yellow warning for high water levels. Waves rose over the quay at Bradbenken, but the water did not reach Bryggen; the structure was subsequently dismantled (NRK Bergen / Vestland).

According to Bergens Tidende, a Bergen company using AI for Brann now wants to challenge the sector’s major players (Bergens Tidende, 27 October).

Sources: NRK Bergen / Vestland, Bergens Tidende, The Local Norway — Period: 26 October 2026 and 27 October 2026