About Bjørn Otto
Bio
In 2021 he became Chair of the Executive committee for OGCI. The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative
(OGCI) is a uniquely CEO-led initiative that aims to accelerate the industry response to climate
change. OGCI member companies include Shell, bp, Total, Saudi Aramco, Exxon Chevron, ENI,
Repsol, CNPC. Petrobras, Oxy and Equinor, who all support the Paris Agreement and its aims. As
leaders in the industry, accounting for almost 30% of global operated oil and gas production, OGCI
aim to expand the pace and scope of the transition to a low-carbon future. Sverdrup is also a Board
member of the OGCI 1bn USD Climate Investment fund.
Since 2015 he led Equinor’s work on climate and energy transition, where key milestones have been
climate roadmaps towards net zero operations from 2030, the ambition to reduce absolute emissions
in Norway to near zero and for Equinor to become a net zero company by 2050.
Sverdrup has extensive leadership experience in Equinor. Since 2007 he has been a Vice President
and member of several of Equinor’s top Management Committees, including Global strategy,
Exploration and Development Norway, Development and Production International and North America.
Following the 2011 terrorist attacks in Norway, Sverdrup was on leave and served as chief of staff
for the government-appointed commission investigating the attacks: The 22 July Commission.
As member of the management committee of Hydro’s oil and gas division he was part of the
integration planning committee for the merger between Statoil and Hydro Oil and Energy in 2007.
Sverdrup has earlier been working at the The Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) as advisor
and has been a national expert to the EU Commission on corporate social responsibility.
He is a frequent speaker at key industry events such as CERA, WFES and SPE and guest lecturer at Imperial College, Columbia University and Harvard Business School.
Sverdrup has been a member of the Board of Directors at Norway’s largest university, NTNU and is a
member of the advisory board at the master program of the Grantham Institute of the Imperial
College in London.
Sverdrup is a political scientist and former research fellow from the University of Oslo.
He is the father of three children and lives in Oslo, Norway.