Before becoming CEO, Eldar was Equinor’s Chief Financial Officer from 2003 to 2010. As CFO, he played a pivotal role in shaping the company’s financial strategy during a time of significant growth, overseeing the landmark 2007 merger with Hydro’s oil and gas division and managing the company’s dual listing on the Oslo and New York stock exchanges.

Having joined Statoil in 1980, Eldar held a number of senior leadership roles over his career, including Executive Vice President for Marketing, Processing & Renewable Energy. In that role, he was instrumental in developing Equinor’s downstream strategy and laying the foundation for its early investments in renewables.

Eldar is Chair of Strømberg Gruppen AS and Vartdal Holding AS. He is an Independent Director at Subsea 7 SA and Fjord Base Holding AS, while advising Nysnø Climate Investments and chairing Vard Group’s Advisory Board—roles reflecting his breadth across industry, maritime engineering, and climate-aligned investment.

He brings deep cross-sector expertise in:

• Integrated upstream‑to‑downstream energy strategy – orchestrating scale mergers, public listings, and governance structures across a multi-decade career

• Transformation & brand governance – leading Equinor through its rebranding and realignment as a broad energy company

• Financial stewardship & capital markets – IPO engineering, asset realignment, and robust financial oversight from CFO to CEO

• Energy transition & renewables integration – embedding early renewables strategy and CCGT/CCS into a traditional oil-and-gas framework

Eldar holds a master’s degree in Business Economics from the Norwegian School of Economics. A lifelong Equinor veteran, he is respected for his steady stewardship during seismic industry shifts, his synthesis of financial discipline and strategic foresight, and his post-Equinor boardcraft in advancing climate-aligned engineering and maritime ventures.