Risk and opportunity go hand in hand in a changing energy landscape. Here, we describe key risks that could affect Equinor’s results, strategy and reputation.
You’ll find an overview by topic area followed by key risks and additional detail you can expand under “Read more”. Some risks are connected and may reinforce each other.
Information is sourced from the 2025 Annual Report. For a comprehensive review, please see the full report.
Fluctuating oil and gas prices, exchange rates, and macroeconomic conditions significantly affect Equinor’s financial results and ability to fund capital expenditure. Uncertainty in global energy supply and demand, as well as geopolitical events, can lead to volatility and impact production, asset values, and taxation.
Generally, Equinor does not have control over the factors that affect market developments and prices. Uncertainty in global and regional energy supply and demand means that Equinor's strategy and planning processes include consideration of different outcomes related to how global energy markets may develop.
Examples of factors that can affect supply and demand balances, and consequently the prices of oil, natural gas, electricity and other energy products include: global and regional economic conditions, political and regulatory developments, geopolitical tensions or instability, actions of OPEC+ and other large energy suppliers, the social and health situation in relevant countries or regions, technological advances, availability of energy resources or access to energy-related acreages and development of supply chains and consumer preferences, including those related to climate issues.
Examples of recent developments that have triggered or contributed to volatility in energy prices, are tariffs, instability in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Energy prices and predominantly oil and natural gas prices are the primary drivers of Equinor’s financial results, liquidity, and its ability to finance planned capital expenditures.
A significant or prolonged period of low prices could lead to changes in production, impairment of assets or reassessment of the viability of projects and future business opportunities. Increases in prices can lead to increased taxes, cost inflation or higher access costs for Equinor. Fluctuating foreign exchange rates, especially between USD, EUR, GBP and NOK, can have a significant impact on Equinor’s operational and financial results.
A large percentage of Equinor’s revenues and cash receipts are denominated in or driven by USD, sales of gas and refined products are mainly denominated in EUR and GBP, while a large portion of operating expenses, capital expenditures, capital distribution and income taxes payable accrue in NOK. The majority of Equinor’s long-term debt has USD exposure. Such risks could have a material adverse effect on Equinor’s business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Political instability, civil unrest, terrorism, sanctions, and trade disputes in regions where Equinor operates can disrupt projects and adversely affect operations, production, and financial results.
Political, economic, and social developments or instability in regions where Equinor has interests and may seek future opportunities could adversely affect Equinor’s business causing financial loss.
Political instability, civil disorder, social unrest, insurrections, acts of terrorism, acts of war, sanctions, geopolitical competition, trade disputes, tariffs and other changes in trade policies, response to economic stress and public health situations (including pandemics), hostile actions against Equinor’s staff, facilities, infrastructures (such as transportation systems or digital infrastructure) may directly or indirectly disrupt, curtail or otherwise affect Equinor’s operations, projects and business opportunities.
These may in turn lead to a decline in production and otherwise adversely affect Equinor’s business, operations, results and financial condition. Similarly, Equinor’s response to such situations could lead to claims from partners and relevant stakeholders and other, litigation and litigation- related costs. Examples of current relevant factors that could impact Equinor’s operations, projects and facilities include the European and Middle East security situations, political instability around supply corridors and worsening trade relations (e.g. sanctions and tariffs) between major political powers.
Changes in resource estimates and access to renewables and low-carbon projects influence future production and revenues. Uncertainty in geological data, government decisions, and market conditions may require significant revisions or lead to impairments.
Our estimates relating to current and future energy-related resources depend on many factors, variables and assumptions that are beyond Equinor’s control, and which may prove to be incorrect over time. The reliability of resource estimates depends on the quality and quantity of Equinor’s geological, technical and economic data together with extensive engineering judgements.
Substantial upward or downward revisions in Equinor’s resources outlook may be required should additional information become available after the initial estimates were prepared. A substantial downward revision could potentially lead to impairments. Equinor’s future oil and gas resource base depends on the company’s timely success in accessing, acquiring, and developing attractive opportunities.
If unsuccessful, future production will decline and future revenue will be reduced. Equinor’s access to resources is impacted by the choices of governments and, in some cases, national oil and gas companies. Changes in fiscal terms and fluctuations in oil and gas prices will have a direct impact on Equinor’s resource base.
Proved oil and gas reserves are estimated based on the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requirements and may differ substantially from Equinor’s view on expected reserves and contingent resources. Equinor’s ability to build material power and low-carbon business portfolios depends on access to attractive opportunities where the right commercial terms are key.
Future conditions, along with risks and uncertainties in power, commodities and carbon markets as well as governmental policies, will influence our ability to achieve our ambitions relating to renewable energy resources and low-carbon business. Such risks could have a material adverse effect on Equinor’s business, financial condition and results of operations.
Changes in laws, regulations, and policies across multiple jurisdictions can impact exploration, production, and financial performance. Regulatory uncertainty and government intervention may increase compliance costs, restrict operations, or require divestment.
Equinor operates in and is subject to the legal and regulatory regimes of, multiple countries. If a country in which Equinor operates changes its laws, regulations, policies, or practices relating to energy, including in response to political, environmental, social or governance concerns, Equinor’s activities relating to exploration, development of fields and projects, production and power generation, and consequently the results of its operations, could be adversely affected.
For example, Equinor’s US portfolio includes activities that use hydraulic fracturing, which is subject to a range of federal, state, and local laws. Changes to regulations or increased regulatory oversight of hydraulic fracturing could adversely affect Equinor's US onshore assets.
In addition, changes in the tax laws of the countries in which Equinor operates could have a material adverse effect on Equinor’s liquidity and results of operations. Moreover, Equinor operates in certain countries which lack well-functioning and reliable legal systems, where the enforcement of contractual rights is uncertain, and where the governmental, fiscal, and regulatory regimes can change over time or can be subject to unexpected or rapid change.
Such changes could constrain our plans, cause operational delays, increase costs of regulatory compliance, increase litigation risk, impact the sale of our products, require us to divest or curtail operations, limit access to new opportunities, and affect provisions for pension, tax, and legal liabilities.
Equinor's offshore wind projects as well as exploration and production activities undertaken together with national oil companies are subject to a significant degree of state control and oversight. In recent years, governments have in some regions exercised greater authority and imposed more stringent conditions on such projects and activities.
Intervention by governments could take a variety of forms, such as nationalisation, expropriation, cancellation, nonrenewal, restriction or renegotiation of our interests, assets, and related rights. Equinor could be subject to the imposition of new contractual obligations, price and exchange controls, tax or royalty increases, payment delays, and currency and capital transfer restrictions.
The ongoing maturation of the regulatory framework and permitting requirements for low-carbon value chains in various countries can also impact financial outcomes from Equinor’s investment in related technologies, opportunities, and projects. Equinor incurs, and expects to continue to incur, substantial capital, operating, maintenance and remediation costs relating to compliance with increasingly complex laws, regulations and obligations related to the protection of the environment and human health and safety, as well as in response to concerns relating to climate change. Such occurrences could have a materially adverse effect on Equinor’s operations and opportunities, liquidity, and financial performance.
Evolving climate policies, regulations, market dynamics, and technology developments may affect asset values, costs, access to capital, and delivery of Equinor’s transition strategy. Uncertainty in stakeholder sentiment and competitive landscape poses additional risks.
Shifts in stakeholder focus between energy security, affordability and sustainability add uncertainty to delivery and outcomes associated with Equinor’s strategy. Changes in climate laws, regulations, and policies as well as adverse litigation outcomes could adversely impact Equinor's financial results and outlook, including the value of its assets. This might be directly (through e.g. regulatory changes towards energy systems free of unabated fossil fuels, changes in taxation, increased costs or access to opportunities) or indirectly (through e.g. changes in consumer behaviour or technology developments).
Greenhouse gas emission costs could increase from current levels and have a different geographical range than today. Equinor applies a default minimum carbon price in investment analysis starting at USD 100 per tonne in 2027, increasing towards USD 122 per tonne by 2030 (2025 real terms). In countries where the actual or predicted carbon price is higher than our default at any point in time, Equinor applies the actual or expected cost, such as in Norway where both a CO₂ tax and the EU Emission Trading System (EU ETS) apply.
Changing demand for renewable energy and low-carbon technologies, and innovation and technology changes supporting their cost-competitive development, represent both threats and opportunities for Equinor. Market development and our ability to reduce costs and capitalise on technology improvements are important but unpredictable risk factors.
Multiple factors in the energy transition contribute to uncertainty in future energy price assumptions, and changes in investor and societal sentiment, both “pro-ESG” and “anti-ESG”, can affect our access to capital markets, attractiveness for investors, and potentially restrict access to finance or increase financing costs.
Strong competition for assets, changing levels of policy support, and different commercial/contractual models may lead to diminishing returns within the renewable and low-carbon industries and hinder Equinor ambitions. These investments may be exposed to interest rate risk and inflation risk.
Equinor’s energy transition plan and climate-related ambitions are responses to challenges and opportunities in the energy transition. There is no assurance that these ambitions will be achieved or that all stakeholders will accept our approach or methods to set, measure or reach our ambitions.
Successful strategy execution depends on development of new technologies, new value chains, societal shifts in consumer demand, as well as firm leadership and support from policy makers. Should societal demands, technological innovation and policy support from governments not shift in parallel with Equinor’s pursuit of significant greenhouse gas emission reductions and energy transition investments, our projects, business plans and financial performance may be adversely affected and Equinor may be unable to meet its climate-related ambitions.
Increased reliance on digital systems exposes Equinor to risks from cyber disruption, unauthorised access, attacks, and technology failure, which can result in operational delays, loss of data, legal liability, and financial losses.
Damage, disruption or shutdown of digital IT and OT systems can occur due to failures during the operation and maintenance of software and hardware, databases or components, power or network outages, hardware or software failures, negligence, user error, or breaches of cyber security.
Risks from cyber disruption and cyber attacks are interconnected, company-wide, and may be linked to third party personnel, practices, hardware, software and infrastructure. Cyber disruption may arise from factors such as unauthorised access or usage, attacks, computer viruses, errors or wrongdoing by employees or others who have gained access to Equinor’s or any connected networks and systems.
Disruption may also be related to threats to our assets from insiders who exploit, or intend to exploit, their legitimate access to Equinor’s facilities or networks for unauthorised purposes. Risks related to cyber disruption may be compounded by the emergence of new technologies like artificial intelligence.
Digital and cyber-disruption, whether in respect of Equinor’s systems and networks or those of third parties on which Equinor relies, could result in delayed activities, loss of production, loss of sensitive or personal information, misuse of information or systems, as well as safety and environmental losses as a result of damage to our physical assets caused by such disruption, and the company could face associated regulatory actions, legal liability, reputational damage and loss of revenue.
Equinor could be required to spend significant financial and other resources to avoid, limit or remedy the damage caused by a security breach or to repair or replace networks and information systems, which in turn could affect our financial performance.
Uncertainties in project development and production operations, including equipment failure, natural hazards, and cost inflation, may delay or curtail projects and negatively impact financial results.
Oil and gas, renewable, low-carbon and other projects or assets may be curtailed, delayed, cancelled or suspended for many reasons. Situations such as equipment shortages or failures, natural hazards (including physical effects of climate change), unexpected drilling conditions or reservoir characteristics, irregularities in geological formations, challenging soil conditions, accidents, mechanical and technical difficulties, power cost and availability, protestor actions, health issues (including pandemics), new technology implementation and quality issues might have significant impact on project delivery and operations.
The risk is potentially higher in new and challenging areas such as deep waters or harsh environments and in new value chains. Cost inflation in capital and operational expenditures can negatively affect project deliveries, results from operations and longer-term financial outcomes.
Equinor’s portfolio of development projects includes a high number of major development projects as well as “first-off” projects (i.e. involving new development concepts, operating regions, execution models, partners/contractors, value chains and markets) that increase portfolio complexity and potentially execution risk.
Equinor’s ability to commercially exploit energy resources and carbon products depends, among other factors, on the availability of adequate capacity of infrastructure to markets at a commercially viable price.
Equinor may be unsuccessful in its efforts to secure commercially viable transportation, transmission, and markets for all its potential production in a cost-efficient manner, which in turn could affect our operational and financial performance.
The Norwegian state’s majority ownership may result in interests that diverge from other shareholders, influencing strategic decisions and potentially affecting Equinor’s market position and financial performance.
A change in the Norwegian state’s ownership policy or in the manner in which the Norwegian state exercises its ownership can impact Equinor’s ability to execute its strategy and deliver on its ambitions or impact Equinor’s financial performance.
The Norwegian state, as our majority shareholder with 67% ownership as of 31 December 2025, has the power to influence the outcome of any vote of shareholders, including amendments to Equinor’s articles of association (which require the support of two-thirds of the votes cast at the general meeting) and the election of all non-employee members of the corporate assembly (which requires a majority of the votes cast).
Factors influencing the voting of the Norwegian state could be different from the interests of the other shareholders. The Norwegian state has resolved that its shares in Equinor and the State’s Direct Financial Interests in NCS licenses must be managed in accordance with a coordinated ownership strategy for the Norwegian state’s oil and gas interests.
Under this strategy, the Norwegian State has required Equinor to market the Norwegian State’s oil and gas together with Equinor’s own oil and gas as a single economic unit and to take account of the Norwegian State’s interests in all decisions that may affect the marketing of these resources.
Any changes in execution of the Norwegian state’s coordinated ownership strategy may have an adverse effect on Equinor’s position in the markets in which it operates and could therefore have an adverse effect on our financial performance.
See also Equinor’s Report on corporate governance published on equinor.com/reports for further details on State ownership and equal treatment of shareholders and transactions with close associates.
Equinor’s reliance on partners, contractors, and joint ventures can expose the company to operational, compliance, and financial risks, including legal liability and reputational damage.
Many of Equinor’s activities are conducted through joint arrangements or with contractors and subcontractors, which may limit Equinor’s influence and control over the performance of such operations.
In 2025 Equinor established Adura, a joint venture with Shell. If operators, partners and contractors fail to fulfil their responsibilities, Equinor can be exposed to financial, operational, safety, security, sustainability and compliance, ethics and integrity risks, including reputational effects.
Equinor is also exposed to enforcement actions by regulators or claimants in the event of an incident in an operation where it does not exercise operational control. Operators, partners, and contractors may be unable or unwilling to compensate Equinor for costs incurred on their behalf or on behalf of the relevant arrangement.
Such risks could impact Equinor’s operational and financial performance, the implementation of our strategy, our reputation and the value of our securities.
Rapid developments by competitors in technology and business models may undermine Equinor’s competitiveness and ability to deliver its strategy. Risks also arise from new technologies such as artificial intelligence.
Equinor could be adversely affected if we do not remain commercially and technologically competitive to efficiently develop and operate an attractive portfolio of assets, to obtain access to new opportunities, and to keep pace with deployment of new technologies and products that can impact our transition to a broad energy company.
Furthermore, the development of new technologies like artificial intelligence is complex and uncertain, and presents various risks including those related to cybersecurity, data privacy, inaccuracies, bias or discrimination and intellectual property infringement. Failure to effectively deploy new technologies, or deficiencies in their implementation could result in legal and regulatory actions, and reputational harm.
Equinor’s financial performance may be negatively impacted by competition from players with stronger financial resources or with increased agility and flexibility, and from an increasing number of companies applying new business models.
Exposure to liquidity, interest rate, foreign exchange, equity, and credit risks may adversely affect Equinor’s financial position and operational capability.
Equinor’s business is exposed to liquidity, interest rate, foreign exchange, equity and credit risks that could adversely affect the results of Equinor’s operations, our financial position and ability to operate, as described in note 4 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in the 2025 Annual Report.
Trading activities in commodity markets entail risks from price volatility, forecasting errors, and counterparty defaults, potentially leading to financial losses.
Equinor uses financial instruments such as futures, options, over-the-counter (OTC) forward contracts, market swaps and contracts for differences related to crude oil, petroleum products, natural gas and electricity to manage price differences and volatility.
Trading activities involve elements of forecasting, and Equinor bears the risk of market movements, the risk of losses if prices develop contrary to expectations, and the risk of default by counterparties, which could have a materially adverse effect on Equinor’s financial performance.
The risk of losses may be heightened by geopolitical instability and uncertainty.
Difficulty in attracting and retaining skilled personnel, and implementing effective organisational models, may impact Equinor’s ability to execute its strategy and affect current and future performance.
Equinor depends on workforce capacity and competence to deliver on its strategy, including transition to a broad energy company. Uncertainties related to the future of the oil and gas industry and the rate of growth of new value chains, the need for new capabilities, and increased competition for talent, pose a risk to securing the right level of workforce competence and capacity through industry cycles.
Further, we may implement internal restructurings and changes to our operating model to meet the needs of the oil and gas, power, low-carbon and other domains, but such changes may not deliver on expectations.
Any such failure to secure the right level of workforce competence and capacity and/or to leverage efficient organisational operating models could have an adverse effect on Equinor’s current and future business.
Inadequate crisis management and insurance coverage may increase vulnerability to major incidents, business disruptions, and financial losses.
Our business could be severely affected if Equinor does not respond or is perceived not to have prepared, prevented, responded, or recovered in an effective and appropriate manner to a crisis or major incident. A crisis or disruption might occur as a result of a security or cybersecurity incident or if a risk described under Safety, security and sustainability risks materialises.
Equinor maintains insurance coverage that includes physical damage to its properties, third-party liability, workers’ compensation and employers’ liability, general liability, sudden pollution, and other cover.
Equinor’s insurance coverage includes deductibles that must be met prior to recovery and is subject to caps, exclusions, and limitations. There is no assurance that such cover will adequately protect Equinor against liability from all potential consequences and damages.
The Equinor group retains parts of its insurable risks in a wholly owned captive insurance company, so insurance recovery outside of the Equinor group may be limited.
Risks to health, safety, and the environment can result in harm to people, assets, and reputation, as well as regulatory action, business interruption, and legal liability.
Risk factors that could lead to impacts on health, safety and the environment include human performance, operational failures, detrimental substances, subsurface conditions (including conditions related to hydraulic fracturing), technical integrity failures, vessel collisions, natural disasters, adverse weather or climatic conditions, physical effects of climate change (see sections 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 5.3 in the full 2025 Annual Report), epidemics or pandemics, breach of human rights, structural and organisational changes and other occurrences.
Continuation, resurgence or emergence of a pandemic, could precipitate or aggravate the other risk factors identified in this report and materially impact Equinor’s operations and financial condition.
These risk factors could result in disruptions of our operations and could, among other things, lead to blowouts, structural collapses, loss of containment of hydrocarbons or other hazardous materials, fires, explosions and water contamination that cause harm to people, loss of life or environmental damage.
All modes of transportation of hydrocarbons are susceptible to a loss of containment of hydrocarbons and other hazardous materials and represent a significant risk to people and the environment.
Equinor also has been and could in the future be subject to civil and/or criminal liability and the possibility of incurring substantial costs, including cost related to remediation if any such health, safety or environmental risk materialises.
It is not possible to guarantee that the management system or other policies and procedures will be able to identify or mitigate all aspects of health, safety and environmental risks or that all activities will be carried out in accordance with these systems.
Hostile or malicious acts, including terrorism, sabotage, and cybercrime, may disrupt operations, cause harm, and result in financial and reputational losses.
Security threats may arise from terrorism, crime, acts of sabotage, armed conflict, civil unrest, maritime crime, insiders and social engineering and illegal or unsafe activism. A changing geopolitical, political, technological and social context makes these factors increasingly unpredictable.
Management of security risks, and the application of national security laws or policies, can incur significant costs, restrict our ability to do business in a particular jurisdiction and limit operations, including our supply chains and the supply of our products.
Failure to avoid security breaches can disrupt Equinor operations, cause loss, misuse or manipulation of data, harm to our people, assets, or the environment, result in fines or liabilities and impact our reputation and future business, all of which may affect Equinor’s financial performance.
Equinor could be required to spend significant financial and other resources to avoid, limit or remedy the damage caused by a security breach, which in turn may adversely affect Equinor’s operational and financial performance
Non-compliance with laws and regulations, including anti-corruption, bribery, competition, and human rights, may result in legal liability, fines, loss of business, and reputational damage.
Supervision, review and sanctions for violations of laws and regulations at the supranational, national and local level may lead to legal liability, substantial fines, claims for damages, criminal sanctions and other sanctions for noncompliance, and reputational damage.
Applicable laws and regulations include, among others, those relating to financial reporting, taxation, bribery and corruption, securities and commodities trading, fraud, competition and antitrust, safety and the environment, labour and employment practices, machine learning and artificial intelligence and data privacy rules.
The enactment of, or changes to, such laws and regulations or potentially conflicting supervisory directives and priorities, could create compliance challenges and increase the likelihood of a violation occurring.
Equinor is subject to oversight by multiple government authorities in Norway and internationally and may become subject to oversight or be required to report to additional government authorities going forward. Any actual or perceived non-compliance with applicable laws or regulations could result in audits, orders, investigations and could lead to enforcement actions, financial exposure, and operational or reputational impacts.
Equinor is, for example, subject to oversight by the Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil), a government supervisory and administrative agency with regulatory responsibility for safety, the working environment, emergency preparedness and security Equinor’s equity securities are listed on Oslo Børs (OSE) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and its EMTN programme for debt securities is listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Equinor is a reporting company under the rules and regulations of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC). Equinor is required to comply with the continuing obligations of relevant regulatory authorities, and violation of these obligations may result in legal liability, the imposition of fines and other sanctions.
Equinor is also subject to review from financial supervisory authorities such as the Norwegian Financial Supervisory Authority (FSA) and the SEC. Reviews performed by financial supervisory authorities could result in changes to previously published financial statements and future accounting practices.
In addition, failure of external reporting to report data accurately and in compliance with applicable standards could result in regulatory action, legal liability, and damage to Equinor’s reputation. Trading activities are subject to regulation and actual or perceived non-compliance with such regulations may adversely affect the Group’s financial results and performance.
Individuals or groups of traders acting for or on behalf of Equinor have in the past, and may in the future, act outside of their respective mandates or in speculative manners which are perceived as inappropriate by regulatory authorities which could result in financial loss, fines, reputational damage or loss of licence to operate, including permissions to trade.
Assurance of financial or sustainability statements could identify deficiencies in Equinor’s internal control processes over reporting, which may result in remediation costs and loss of investor confidence that can potentially impact the market price of our securities. Errors, inconsistencies, misinterpretation, misuse or lack of information in our external reporting (e.g. related to environmental matters) can similarly cause loss of investor confidence and expose us to risks associated with accusations of greenwashing.
Non-compliance with anti-corruption and bribery laws, anti-money laundering laws, competition and antitrust laws, sanctions and trade restrictions, human rights legislation or other applicable laws, or failure to meet Equinor’s ethical requirements, could expose Equinor to legal liability, lead to a loss of business, loss of access to capital and damage our reputation and social licence to operate.
Equinor is subject to anti-corruption and bribery laws and anti-money laundering laws in multiple jurisdictions, including the Norwegian Penal code, the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the UK Bribery Act. A violation of such applicable laws could expose Equinor to investigations from multiple authorities and may lead to criminal and/or civil liability with substantial fines.
Incidents of non-compliance with applicable anti-corruption and bribery laws and regulations and the Equinor Code of Conduct could be damaging to Equinor’s reputation, competitive position, and shareholder value. Similarly, a breach of human rights legislation, due diligence and reporting obligations or a failure to uphold our human rights policy may lead to economic sanctions or damage our reputation and social licence to operate.
Equinor has a diverse portfolio of projects worldwide and operates in markets and sectors impacted by sanctions and international trade restrictions. Sanctions and trade restrictions are complex, unpredictable and are often implemented at short notice. Any violation, even if minor in monetary terms, could result in substantial civil and/or criminal penalties and could materially adversely affect Equinor’s business and results of operations or financial condition.
Equinor is subject to competition and antitrust laws in multiple jurisdictions, including the Norwegian Competition Act, the Treaty of the Functioning of the European Union and the Unites States’ Sherman Act, Clayton Act, HSR Act and Federal Trade Commission Act. A violation of such laws could expose Equinor to investigations from multiple authorities and may lead to criminal and/or civil liability with substantial fines.
Incidents of noncompliance with applicable competition and antitrust laws and the Equinor Code of Conduct could be damaging to Equinor’s reputation, competitive position, and shareholder value. There can be no assurance that Equinor’s policies and procedures will be successful in preventing any violations of applicable laws and regulations of this nature.
Extreme weather and chronic climate impacts may disrupt operations, reduce energy yield, and increase costs or health, safety, and environmental incidents. Ongoing assessment and mitigation support portfolio resilience
By assessing physical climate risk exposure of our assets across scenarios and implementing mitigation measures as appropriate, we aim to support portfolio resilience in a changing climate. Over several years, we have assessed the changes in physical climate exposure to our assets and have improved our understanding of the parameters that need to be considered and the associated uncertainties. Based on our current evaluation of the portfolio exposure to climate change, we do not consider physical climate risk to be financially material. We will continue to review this conclusion in light of the progress of our risk assessments and changes to the portfolio.
Equinor’s portfolio includes both offshore and onshore assets located across a diverse set of regions around the world. While the company’s core business is currently offshore in Norway, UK, USA, and Brazil, our transition toward becoming a broader energy company will result in changes to our geographic footprint.
Equinor assesses changes in both acute hazards, such as extreme weather events, and chronic hazards, such as long-term shifts in sea level and wave conditions, both for all assets for which Equinor has financial control and equity accounted assets. To evaluate and manage physical climate risks, we analyse the location of our assets against a range of climate-related hazards under selected Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) scenarios from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), covering relevant future time horizons.