Organisation

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate is a governmental specialist directorate and administrative body, established in 1972. We report to the the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. Our office is in Stavanger and in Harstad with around 200 employees.
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s primary objective is to contribute to the greatest possible values for Norwegian society from the oil and gas activities through efficient and responsible resource management. Health, safety, the environment and other users of the sea are important considerations in this work.
In order to make the most efficient contribution to this, we perform four functions:
- The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate is to be an adviser to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy through its professional integrity and interdisciplinary expertise.
- We has a national responsibility for data from the Norwegian continental shelf. The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s data, overview and analyses constitute a crucial factual basis on which the activities are founded.
- We shall be a driving force for realising the resource potential by emphasising long-term solutions, upside opportunities, economies of scale and joint operations, as well as ensuring that time-critical resources are not lost.
- In cooperation with other authorities, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate is to ensure comprehensive follow-up of the petroleum activities.
The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate sets frameworks, stipulates regulations and makes decisions in areas where it has been delegated authority. We are also responsible for conducting metering audits and collecting fees from the petroleum industry.
In addition, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate contributes administrative competence, mapping of resources and petroleum data administration for the development aid programme Oil for Development.
A flexible expertise organisation
We are a flexible expertise organisation in comparison to to more traditional hierarchal public administration. We are a fluid organisation with no sections or departments, but around 70 teams with designated mandates and the teams are delegated authority for products, processes and quality.
The director general and five directors constitute the executive management and eleven Assistent directors make up the operations management.
Main areas
- License management
- Technology, analysis and coexistence
- Organisation, IT and data management
- Framework and governance
- Communication and public affairs
Our values
We have four values we utilise in our daily work and want to live up to:
- Open
- Engaged
- Responsible
- Stand together
Our values form the basis for our culture. They reflect what we can expect of each other and how we work and act.
Our values build on the value foundation of the government’s employer policy: Government administration shall promote democracy and legal safeguards, and stand for professional integrity and effectiveness.
Contact person:
Heidi Ersland Pedersen, tel. +47 51 87 62 81
Updated: 04/05/2022