Stordal has been filling this role since June of last year, and has now been appointed for a term of six years as Director General with an extension option.

"I'm very pleased that Torgeir Stordal will be heading up the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate. Torgeir is a knowledgeable and experienced leader who is well-poised to further develop the Directorate. He is intimately familiar with the industry and we're getting an agency head who can contribute to further value creation on the Norwegian shelf moving forward," says Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Aasland (Labour Party).

Stordal has a cand.scient. (equivalent to a master's) degree in geophysics from the University of Bergen. He was hired by the NPD in 2017 as director of exploration, and in 2020, he was given primary responsibility for technology, analyses and coexistence.

Before he started working for the NPD, Stordal worked as a geophysicist and has experience from a number of management positions, including as exploration manager for Norske Shell in 2009-2013 and a global role in resource evaluation at Shell's headquarters in the Netherlands in 2013-2017. Stordal has also held positions of trust in the Norwegian Petroleum Society and Norwegian Oil and Gas (now Offshore Norge).

"The energy industry is undergoing a major transition, and the authorities will be playing a role in this transition. I'm looking forward to continuing this work alongside our skilled leaders and employees," says Director General Torgeir Stordal.

Read the press release from the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy here (In Norwegian only)