Norway’s StatoilHydro Pulls Families Of Staff Out Of Iran

Norwegian energy giant StatoilHydro ASA (STO) is to pay for all family members of its foreign workers to leave Iran because of security concerns over the post-election violence, the company said June 16.

“The top priority for us is the security of our employees,” company spokesman Kai Nielsen told AFP. “Because of the way the situation is today in Iran, we all agree that it is better to make the families go back to their home countries.”

StatoilHydro employs 120 people in Iran – half of whom are foreign workers.

The company offered to pay for flights out of the country for their close family relatives and all 17 accepted, Nielsen said, adding there were no plans at present to pull out the actual employees.

Demonstrations in support of defeated reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi have been taking place in Tehran since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the landslide victor of Friday’s election.

At least seven civilian protesters were killed on Monday in clashes with police.