Key Takeaways
- • The Gjedrem Committee submitted a review of Norges Bank's ethical investment guidelines to Norway's Ministry of Finance on Thursday, recommending a major shift in how the $2.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund handles defense investments.
- • The committee proposed that the fund be allowed to invest in companies producing nuclear-weapon components from NPT nuclear-weapon states allied with Norway, which could reinclude several European and American firms.
- • No new companies will be added or removed immediately; the current exclusion framework stays in place until the Norwegian parliament votes on the changes in mid-2027.
- • Norges Bank's central bank response is due in January, with the finance ministry expected to publish a white paper proposing a new ethics framework in the spring.
- • Human rights and humanitarian groups, including Amnesty International Norway and the Norwegian Red Cross, criticized the proposals, while the committee warned of possible retaliatory measures against Norwegian interests.
Summary
Norway's sovereign wealth fund, managed by Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) and valued at roughly 21.8 trillion Norwegian kroner (about $2.3 trillion according to CNBC), may soon be permitted to invest in major Western defense companies. The fund, which holds stakes in around 1.5% of the world's listed companies, is currently barred from firms including Airbus, BAE Systems, Boeing, BWX Technologies and Lockheed Martin because they contribute to the manufacture of nuclear weapons. The fund does hold some defense stocks, including a 2.3% stake in Germany's Rheinmetall and a 1.5% stake in Italy's Leonardo.
A review of the ethical guidelines was ordered in November 2025 following controversy over divestments from some Israeli and American firms. On Thursday, the independent Gjedrem Committee delivered its findings to the Ministry of Finance. The committee said the nuclear weapons criterion should be retained but that its scope should change, so that the fund would not invest in nuclear weapons producers unless the company is domiciled in an NPT nuclear-weapon state allied with Norway. It said several European and American component makers could therefore be reincluded. The report also recommended allowing investment in companies producing weapons Norway needs for its own defense, and removing the requirement that arms makers be assessed for compliance with international humanitarian law. The committee argued that the fund must be "prepared for situations where conflicts escalate into war," citing geopolitical instability, the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, and energy security concerns.
The committee also recommended that the Council on Ethics continue operating but stop advising NBIM on taking action over ethical concerns, limiting its role to analysis of company breaches. It warned that the fund faces rising backlash risk, noting that the conditions for exercising ownership have become more restrictive, particularly in the U.S. The report follows a September 2025 episode in which the U.S. State Department said it was "very troubled" by NBIM's exit from Caterpillar and five Israeli banks. Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg had said at the time that the decision was "not a political decision."
The process ahead is lengthy. Norway will hold a public consultation, with the central bank due to respond in January. The finance ministry will propose a new framework in a spring white paper, and parliament is expected to vote in mid-2027. Until then, temporary guidelines remain in place: the executive board can only revoke earlier exclusion decisions, and the Council on Ethics cannot recommend new exclusions or observation listings. Council on Ethics chair Svein Richard Brandtzæg said the body would study the report carefully before submitting its response.
Human rights advocates pushed back. John Peder Egenæs, secretary general of Amnesty International Norway, said the proposals "risk weakening accountability and integrity," adding that "other investors pay attention, and companies do too." Grete Herlofson, secretary general of the Norwegian Red Cross, called investment in nuclear weapons producers "ethically and humanitarianly completely incomprehensible."
A review of the ethical guidelines was ordered in November 2025 following controversy over divestments from some Israeli and American firms. On Thursday, the independent Gjedrem Committee delivered its findings to the Ministry of Finance. The committee said the nuclear weapons criterion should be retained but that its scope should change, so that the fund would not invest in nuclear weapons producers unless the company is domiciled in an NPT nuclear-weapon state allied with Norway. It said several European and American component makers could therefore be reincluded. The report also recommended allowing investment in companies producing weapons Norway needs for its own defense, and removing the requirement that arms makers be assessed for compliance with international humanitarian law. The committee argued that the fund must be "prepared for situations where conflicts escalate into war," citing geopolitical instability, the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, and energy security concerns.
The committee also recommended that the Council on Ethics continue operating but stop advising NBIM on taking action over ethical concerns, limiting its role to analysis of company breaches. It warned that the fund faces rising backlash risk, noting that the conditions for exercising ownership have become more restrictive, particularly in the U.S. The report follows a September 2025 episode in which the U.S. State Department said it was "very troubled" by NBIM's exit from Caterpillar and five Israeli banks. Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg had said at the time that the decision was "not a political decision."
The process ahead is lengthy. Norway will hold a public consultation, with the central bank due to respond in January. The finance ministry will propose a new framework in a spring white paper, and parliament is expected to vote in mid-2027. Until then, temporary guidelines remain in place: the executive board can only revoke earlier exclusion decisions, and the Council on Ethics cannot recommend new exclusions or observation listings. Council on Ethics chair Svein Richard Brandtzæg said the body would study the report carefully before submitting its response.
Human rights advocates pushed back. John Peder Egenæs, secretary general of Amnesty International Norway, said the proposals "risk weakening accountability and integrity," adding that "other investors pay attention, and companies do too." Grete Herlofson, secretary general of the Norwegian Red Cross, called investment in nuclear weapons producers "ethically and humanitarianly completely incomprehensible."
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