Norway's Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), which is responsible for the investments of the Government Pension Fund Global, has excluded a further three companies from its investment portfolio.

NBIM’s executive board has decided to exclude Thai oil and gas company PTT, and its subsidiary PTT Oil and Retail Business, due to “unacceptable risk” that the companies contribute to violations of individuals’ rights in situations of war or conflict.

The decision was based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics on 10 May 2022.

The executive board has also decided to exclude Israeli software company Cognyte Software due to the risk it contributes to human rights violations.

Its decision was made following a recommendation by the Council on Ethics on 17 June 2022.

NBIM noted that the executive board has not conducted an independent assessment of all aspects of the recommendations, but it was satisfied that the exclusion criteria have been fulfilled.

“Before deciding to exclude a company, Norges Bank shall consider whether the use of other measures, including the exercise of ownership rights, may be better suited,” it said.

“The executive board concludes that it is not appropriate to use other measures in these cases.”

The executive board also decided to revoke the observation of Italian aerospace company Leonardo.

In 2017, Norges Bank placed Leonardo under observation following a recommendation from the Council on Ethics to exclude the company over risk that it contributes or is responsible for corruption.

Based on the Council on Ethics investigations, it was decided that there were no longer grounds for observation.

The decision was based on a recommendation from the Council on Ethics on 23 August 2022.

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