Equinor ASA - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Equinor ASA is Medium Risk.

Equinor ASA is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. Equinor occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	High Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	Medium Risk
Funding	Medium Risk
Political Actions	Lower Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Equinor integrates ESG into its business practices. As stated in its 2024 Annual Report, an outcome of engaging with shareholders in the ways outlined in the chart would lead to “improved ESG integration into strategy, sustainability and risk mitigation” (1). The company also expects suppliers to “have net zero ambitions and near-term emissions reduction targets” (2). However, the company has not canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (3).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Equinor likely uses Benevity as its charitable giving platform. Benevity vets charities according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hate List, which includes mainstream libertarian, conservative, family, and religious advocacy organizations (1)(2)(3).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Equinor appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its hiring. From its 2021 Sustainability Report: “We focus on diversity of new hires and have set
targets for our graduate and apprenticeship programmes in terms of gender and nationality” (1). The company appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its business structure through the establishment of gender and racial targets for its hiring. The company is seeking “50:50 balance in gender and nationality (Norwegian and other than Norwegian) when hiring for our corporate graduate programme, and an ambition for one-third of participants in our apprenticeship programme in Norway to be female” (2). The company protects its employees against viewpoint discrimination (3).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

The company is aligned with the Paris Agreement, which entails a commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 (1). The company supports DEI within its business practices. From its 2024 Annual Report: “We are committed to integrating D&I into our short and long term business strategy, measuring progress and being transparent about our performance” (2)(3).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Equinor provides a benefits package for employees that covers travel/lodging costs for an abortion (1). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (2).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

Equinor does not operate a PAC at this time and has not used its lobbying for ideological purposes (1)(2)(3).