Norway levies a 78% tax on oil companies, based on annual net profit. This profit is invested in an oil fund, meant to be spent after the oil fields have run dry. Currently the fund’s value passed $1 trillion. Shared by everyone, this makes each Norwegian $190,000 richer. To my knowledge, no oil company has left because of high taxes.
Currently, Norwegians make more from the oil fund than from the tax on oil itself. In other words, the country has placed itself in an enviable position for a future with less dependence on oil. If this simplified presentation piques your interest, I suggest additional study of the issue online.
— Jon Svendsen
Wasilla
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