Former Shipping Executive Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal Appointed as Statkraft’s New CEO

In a significant development, Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal, former Chief Executive of Golden Ocean, has been selected as the new CEO of Statkraft, Norway’s largest utility, succeeding Christian Rynning-Tønnesen. Vartdal, previously serving as the Executive Vice President for the Nordics at Statkraft, will assume her new role as CEO on April 1, 2024. Rynning-Tønnesen, who held the CEO position for 14 years, opted to step down from his role.

Expressing her gratitude, Vartdal conveyed in a social media post that she felt very humbled to be entrusted with the responsibility of leading Statkraft. She emphasized the company’s pivotal role in contributing to the green shift in Norway, Europe, and globally, reaffirming its commitment to offering stable, green energy at competitive prices in the markets it operates.

Before her promotion to lead Statkraft’s Nordics business area, Vartdal headed the European wind and solar business segment at the company. With a diverse background, Vartdal has held board positions at Yara and Mowi and served as a member of the corporate assembly at Equinor. Currently, she is on the board of Renewable Norway and several subsidiaries of Statkraft.

Prior to her tenure at Statkraft, Vartdal was associated with the dry bulk shipping company Golden Ocean. Beginning as CFO in 2010, she later assumed the role of CEO, leading the company for almost four years before departing in late 2019.

Alexandra Bech Gjørv, chair of Statkraft’s board of directors, expressed the board’s pleasure at Vartdal’s acceptance of the CEO position. She emphasized the strength of appointing the new CEO, highlighting Vartdal’s familiarity with the organization.

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