The head of Norway's sovereign wealth fund announced Monday that it is withdrawing investments from 11 Israeli companies, following a public debate in Norway over the fund's holdings in Israeli firms that received extensive media coverage. The fund is the largest of its kind in the world, managing revenues from the Nordic country's oil and gas exports, with total assets of about $1.9 trillion.
The announcement comes amid a continued downturn in diplomatic ties between Norway and Israel during the war, including Norway's recognition of a Palestinian state in May last year alongside Spain and Ireland.
Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management which manages the Norwegian oil fund, said the decision was made due to "extraordinary circumstances." He described the situation in Gaza as a severe humanitarian crisis and said, "We are investing in companies operating in a country at war, and conditions in the West Bank and Gaza have worsened recently."
Last week, the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten revealed that the fund had invested in Israeli aerospace manufacturer Bet Shemesh Engines, which produces components for fighter jet engines. Tangen confirmed the report and admitted the fund had even increased its stake after the war in Gaza began. The uproar prompted Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre to ask Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg, a former NATO secretary-general, to review the matter.
The fund currently holds shares in 61 Israeli companies, most of them included in its official benchmark index. However, 11 of these investments fall outside the index and were not publicly listed. Following public pressure, the fund's management said it decided last week to sell off all such "off-benchmark" holdings in Israeli firms as soon as possible.
This is not the first time the Norwegian oil fund has divested from Israeli companies. In May last year, it sold all its shares in Paz Oil after the fund's ethics council determined that the company supplied fuel to settlements in Judea and Samaria. In December 2024, it sold its entire stake in Bezeq for the same reason.
The fund said it has closely monitored companies connected to wars and conflicts for years. "Since 2020, we have spoken to more than 60 companies about this issue. Thirty-nine of those conversations focused on Judea and Samaria and Gaza," it said. According to the fund, scrutiny of Israeli companies intensified last fall, "and as a result, we have already sold investments in several Israeli companies."
