The Board has overriding responsibility for managing the group and supervising its day-to-day management and operations. The work of the Board is based on rules of procedure and applicable legislation describing its responsibility, duties and administrative procedures. Equinor’s Board of Directors (BoD) has three sub-committees which act as preparatory bodies.
Rules for the Board of Directors in Equinor ASA adopted by the board of directors on 5 May 2026:
The role of the Compensation and Executive Development Committee is to assist the board in its work on terms and conditions of employment for the Chief Executive, and on the philosophy, principles and strategy for the compensation of leading executives in Equinor.
Instructions for the Board of Directors' Compensation and Executive Development Committee adopted by the Board of Directors on 27 July 2021:
The Board's Safety, Security, Sustainability and Ethics committee (the Committee) is established to support Equinor’s commitment to sustainable and ethical conduct.
The Committee will assist Equinor ASA’s (the Company’s) board of directors (the Board) in its supervision of the Company’s safety, security, sustainability and ethics policies, systems and principles with the exception of aspects related to “Financial Matters” defined as (a) the Company’s financial reporting practices and requirements, (b) the quality, adequacy and effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures, and (c) the Company’s internal controls over financial reporting. In addition the Committee will review and assess the administration’s general reports concerning the developments, implementation and practise within corporate social responsibility policies, systems and principles.
The Committee’s responsibility shall not affect the board audit committee’s (BAC) objective, role and responsibilities as described in the Instructions for the BAC as adopted by the Board or any applicable laws or regulations.
It is not the duty of the Committee to plan or conduct internal monitoring activities such as audits, verifications and investigations, this being the responsibility of management and the corporate audit function.
Instructions for the Board's safety, security, sustainability and ethics committee adopted by the Board of Directors on 5 May 2026:
The role of the Audit Committee is to assist in the exercise of the Board’s management and control responsibilities and to ensure that the group has an independent and effective external and internal auditing system.
The duties of the Audit Committee include maintaining continuous contact with Equinor’s elected auditor concerning the auditing of the company’s accounts.
The committee also supervises the implementation of and compliance with the group’s ethical guidelines, concerning financial reporting.
The Audit Committee assesses and makes a recommendation concerning the choice of external auditor, and it is responsible for ensuring that the external auditor meets the requirements set by the authorities in Norway and in other countries in which Equinor is listed on the stock exchange.
Instructions for the Board of Directors' Audit Committee adopted by the Board of Directors on 5 May 2026:
The Board of Directors (BoD) has adopted an annual plan for its work which is revised with regular intervals.
Recurring items on the board's annual plan are: safety, security, corporate strategy, business plans and targets, quarterly and annual results, annual reporting, ethics and compliance, sustainability, management’s performance reporting, management leadership assessment and compensation and succession planning, project status review, people and organisation strategy and priorities, and an annual review of the board's governing documentation.
The BoD has dedicated strategy sessions with the corporate executive committee twice a year to review strategy progress and align on forward plans. There are also dedicated risk sessions with the BoD and CEO at least twice a year to discuss current risk outlook and risk adjusting actions.
The BoD discussed the energy transition in all ordinary board meetings either as integral parts of strategy and investment discussions or as separate topics.
The BoD has eight regular meetings per year and extraordinary meetings when needed. In 2024 the BoD had a total of 14 meetings.