Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), responsible for the investments of the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG), has excluded one company from the GPFG and will end special ownership dialogues with two companies.

NBIM’s executive board has excluded the company RLX Technology Inc. due to its production of tobacco or tobacco products, based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics of 26 June 2024.

Before deciding to exclude a company, NBIM considers whether other measures, including exercising ownership rights, could be better suited. In this case, the executive board concluded that it was not appropriate to use other measures.

The executive board did not conduct an independent assessment of all aspects of the recommendation but was satisfied that the exclusion criterion was fulfilled.

In addition to this, the board decided to end special ownership dialogues with Eni SpA and ThyssenKrupp AG.

In March 2012, the Council on Ethics recommended to place Eni under observation due to concerns about oil spills linked to their activities in the Niger Delta.

The Ministry of Finance also asked NBIM to engage with the company as part of its ownership dialogue.

NBIM maintained dialogue with Eni, monitoring oil spill prevention efforts and remediation measures. In September 2023, Eni announced plans to exit Niger Delta onshore operations and has since sold its subsidiary.

Given these developments, the board found the company’s risk for contributing to or being responsible for severe environmental damage was no longer unacceptable within the meaning of the ethical guidelines.

Meanwhile, the Council of Ethics in 2020 also recommended observation of ThyssenKrupp based on concerns about corruption risks involving bribes and suspicious transactions across eight countries over 20 years.

In March 2021, the board asked NBIM to follow up through ownership dialogue over three years, and during this time detailed discussions were had.

The company was responsive and open throughout ownership, allowing a better understanding of how its anti-corruption efforts have evolved.

The board found that the forward-looking risk of the company contributing to or being responsible for gross corruption is no longer unacceptable within the meaning of the ethical guidelines.

Despite ending the dialogues with Eni and ThyssenKrupp AG, NBIM will continue to engage with the companies and follow up on these cases through regular ownership dialogue.

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