OSLO, Norway (AP) – Bolivian President Evo Morales said Thursday that he is using a visit to Norway to learn how the oil-rich welfare state manages its petroleum resources, both in terms of its environmental impact and as a source of wealth.

“When I was elected president, I learned about the significant progress Norway has made in its energy sector,” Morales told reporters through a translator. “What I'm especially interested in during this visit is Norwegian oil and gas policy.”

Morales began to boost state ownership of Bolivia's modest oil and natural gas resources in 2006, a decade after they were privatized. The move towards nationalization raised the ire of foreign oil companies with investments in Bolivia, and analysts believe Morales wants to tread carefully to avoid alienating the foreign investors he needs to increase raw materials output.

Norway will share with Bolivia its experience managing offshore oil and gas resources “in terms of environmental protection, how to exercise state control over resources and the promotion of a mixed public-private (energy) sector,” Norway's Environment Minister Erik Solheim said during a joint news conference with Morales.

Norway has become one of the world's richest nations thanks to North Sea oil and gas exploration while at the same time striking a balance between private and public sector control of petroleum resources. Norway's government remains the largest shareholder in Statoil, the primary operator on the Norwegian continental shelf.

Morales' trip also included a brief meeting on climate change in Oslo. On Friday, the president will visit northern Norway's indigenous Sami parliament.