Norwegian Wealth Fund to Oppose Elon Musk’s Tesla Compensation Plan

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, managed by Norges Bank Investment Management, has announced its decision to vote against Elon Musk’s massive CEO compensation package at Tesla’s upcoming annual meeting. The fund, known as the Government Pension Fund Global, holds a .98% stake in Tesla valued at $7.72 billion.

The fund expressed concerns over the size of Musk’s compensation package, which was recently valued at $44.9 billion, down from $56 billion in January. Norges Bank Investment Management cited issues with the total size of the award, performance triggers, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk.

Despite the significant value generated under Musk’s leadership since the grant date in 2018, the fund remains wary of the compensation package’s structure. Norges Bank Investment Management stated that it will continue to engage in constructive dialogue with Tesla on this and other topics.

The Government Pension Fund Global, worth 17.80 trillion Norwegian Krone ($1.67 trillion), invests proceeds from Norway’s oil and gas industry to secure pensions for future generations. Due to its massive size, the fund diversifies its investments across 72 countries worldwide to prevent overheating the Norwegian economy.

In addition to voting against Musk’s compensation package, the fund plans to support several shareholder policies that management has recommended shareholders vote against, including adopting a noninterference policy, a simple majority vote, declassifying the board of directors, and publishing reports on harassment and discrimination prevention efforts.