SANDEFJORD, Norway, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Norway on Tuesday awarded stakes in 62 offshore oil and gas exploration licences to 24 energy companies in its annual licensing round, including in the Arctic Barents Sea, the country's energy minister said.
The annual award jumped from 47 licences one year ago when 25 firms received permits. (Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis and Nora Buli, editing by Terje Solsvik)