The Norwegian oil company Equinor is being sued over alleged business links to the Israeli energy company Delek Group, which has been flagged by the UN high commissioner for human rights for operating in illegal settlements in Palestinian territory.
A legal complaint being filed on Thursday by Greenpeace Norway claims Equinor has breached Norway’s transparency act by failing to conduct proper due diligence or limit damage from its connection to Delek Group. The act aims to aid companies “in meeting challenges of human rights abuses”.
Equinor has partnered with Ithaca Energy to develop the huge Rosebank oilfield in the UK’s North Sea waters, and Delek Group is the controlling shareholder of Ithaca. The legal challenge has been filed to the Norwegian Consumer Authority, which is responsible for ensuring that companies comply with the transparency act. Greenpeace and Uplift are also fighting Rosebank in courts in Scotland, where they claim the licence for the field was granted unlawfully.
The Rosebank deal could send a reported £250m towards Delek Group. Delek Group was listed by the UN in June 2023 as a company operating in support of Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land that are illegal under international law. It also provides fuel for the Israel Defense Forces via its subsidiary Delek Israel.
Equinor is majority-owned by the Norwegian state, which has taken a strong position on the conflict in Palestine, recognising it as a state. Norway’s foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, warned companies in October not to engage with firms that operate in occupied Palestinian territory as this “may be associated with serious violations of human rights”. Norway’s biggest pension fund and its enormous sovereign wealth fund have divested from Delek Group in recent years.
Frode Pleym, the head of Greenpeace Norway, said: “It’s the Norwegian government’s job to hold Equinor accountable and in line with Norwegian values. We are filing this complaint because they have failed to do this. This has to be stopped.”
Tessa Khan, the executive director of Uplift, said: “The Norwegian government has taken a lead on standing up for the human rights of Palestinians. So why is Equinor – majority-owned by the state – comfortable with developing a project that will send hundreds of millions to a company flagged by the UN for human rights concerns? The hypocrisy of its Rosebank project is now difficult to ignore.”
More than 20,000 Norwegians have signed a petition against Equinor’s collaboration with Ithaca and Delek, and protests took place at Equinor’s recent autumn conference and its AGM in May.
A spokesperson for Equinor said: “We do not believe we have breached the Norwegian transparency act. Should Equinor be contacted by the [authorities], we stand ready to respond to any questions as appropriate … Equinor has no business relationship with Delek Group [and] has no influence over the ownership structure of Ithaca.”
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The Rosebank field is the UK’s largest untapped oilfield and contains hundreds of millions of barrels of oil equivalent. Equinor has an 80% stake in Rosebank, and Ithaca holds 20%. Ruth Crawford, a lawyer for Greenpeace in the Scottish legal case, said in November: “This project will produce substantial amounts of oil and gas [with] a substantial impact on the climate and a substantial impact on environmental and human health.”
The Norwegian ministry of trade, industry and fisheries, which manages the state’s 67% shareholding in Equinor, declined to comment. Delek Group and Ithaca Energy did not respond to requests for comment.
