Norwegian crowns move away from Israel. This Monday, August 11, the sovereign fund of Norway, the most important in the world, announced to separate from its shares in 11 Israeli companies. The announcement was made after revelations on the participation of the fund in companies directly involved in the war in Gaza, in particular an Israeli manufacturer of engines equipped with TSAhal fighter planes.
“These measures were taken in response to extraordinary circumstances. The situation in Gaza constitutes A serious humanitarian crisis. We are invested in companies that carry out their activities in a country at war, and the conditions in West Bank And in Gaza have recently deteriorated ”announced his chief Nicolai Tangen, quoted in a press release.
The Norwegian sovereign fund – also known as the oil funds because it is fueled by considerable revenue from the country’s oil and gas exports – has assets of some $ 1,900 billion (1,646 billion euros), with investments distributed worldwide.
On June 4, the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten revealed that this fund had invested in the Israeli company Bet Shemesh Engines Holdings, which manufactures parts for the engines used in Israeli hunting aircraft. The next day, Nicolai Tangen had confirmed that the fund had acquired participation in the company in 2023, an investment increased after the start of the war waged by Israel in Gaza in response to Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.
In the process, the Norwegian Prime Minister reacted, asking his Minister of Finance to contact the Central Bank of the country, Norges Bank, which manages the fund. Thus, the Ministry of Finance asked the bank to “Review the implementation of the fund management mandate, its investments in Israeli companies, and to propose the new measures it deems necessary “said the bank.
At the end of the first half, the fund held shares in 61 Israeli companies. Among these, 11 companies did not appear in “The reference index” of the ministry, which measures the economic performance of the sovereign fund.
A decision was made last week according to which “All investments in Israeli companies that are not included in the reference index will be sold as soon as possible“Said the Norges Bank Investment Management in its press release.
The fund also said that it “For a long time paid particular attention to companies associated with wars and conflicts». “Since 2020, we have contacted more than 60 companies to raise this question. Among these, 39 dialogues concerned the West Bank and Gaza“, He said. The monitoring of Israeli companies was intensified in the fall of 2024. “Consequently, we have sold our investments in several Israeli companies”, says the sovereign fund.