Pull Statoil out of the Alberta tar sands

The Norwegian government owns 2/3 of the shares in the national oil company Statoil, but refuses to act on their ownership. The Norwegian government sits on the sideline while Statoil involve themselves in tar sands exploitation in Alberta. The ecological consequences - both locally in Alberta, and globally, measured in climate impact - are disastrous.
The government claims that as an investor the state should not interfere in the individual investment decisions of the companies that the state co-owns. They also claim that "if we don't do it, someone else will, and they may not adhere to the same strict environmental standards we do".

This way of signing off any responsibility means that the board of Statoil are left to make all major decisions regarding Norwegian oil and gas-policy, and as a result also Norwegian climate policy.

International pressure and attention would help the organizations and individuals in Norway who are working to make the state assume responsibility for its investments, and pull Statoil out of the Alberta tar sands. If the state of Norway was to withdraw from investments in tar sand it would be an important victory in the ongoing fight against tar sand exploitation.