Born 1946
MSc, Underwater Technology, Naval Architect, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden.
IMI-84
Wife: Ping Luo Norberg, ne. PRC
Children: Camilla, (51 in 2023), MSc Chemical Engineering; Interior Designer, Wales, UK; David, 49, MSc Petroleum Engineering; Oslo, Norway; Elisabeth, 45, Concession Manager the UK Government, Windfarms, Glasgow, Scotland. Three lovely grandchildren.
My lifestyle has not changed so far, although you never know, I am only 77 years old after all.
I was 2 ½ when my parents brought the then family of four individuals to Ethiopia. I still hear Haile Selassie’s lions’ night-roars in my inner ear.
There was a slightly more stable period when I grew up, sort of. Six of my seven siblings were born, and my Tropical Disease Specialist father and nurse mother moved us around mainly in Sweden, but on occasion in Africa, the M.E. and Asia, always bringing some siblings along. All my brothers and sister live happily. It was during this time I studied, and got married with Agneta, whom most of my IMI classmates met in ‘84. And I started at Götaverken Arendal (GVA) in Gothenburg, Sweden, as an oil tanker ship trial manager and ship crew trainer. It lasted a year until the bottom of the tanker market fell out and GVA lost 11 of 30 something contracts in one blow, and from there it went down and down. In our consulting stint with Burmah Oil Tankers, our team found out exactly why the tanker market went south. But that’s another story.
From then on, the frequency of career events multiplied, as often is the case with oil and gas project professionals, you get into the act at some point and three to four years later you see the effort of your toil start production somewhere offshore, or on land.
I have managed projects and companies, in contracting companies such as McDermott, NOLA; Aker AS, Norway; and in oil companies such as Shell Oil, BP and Lundin. I started a Project Management company in 2000, together with my brother Peter, who is still at it managing that same company. I have lived and worked in as many places as the projects have taken me. Stavanger and Oslo, Norway; Aberdeen, Scotland; Dubai, UAE; Amman, Jordan; Houston, Texas; Hollywood, Florida; Mumbai, India; Guangzhou, China.
My business ambitions brought me crisscrossing the world in one position or another, from Sales Manager, Project Manager, CEO, other corporate director roles and as Chairman. I have stitched together major business deals and managed huge projects, using my technical and managerial skills for what they were worth. I had great successes and disappointments before entering the IMI-84 class, and even greater successes and less accomplishments after the Geneva period. The difference was that before IMI, I had no clue what I was doing, flying by my pants; afterwards I could see clearly why I was blessed or cursed. I said to myself when I toiled until 2 a´ 3 AM with IMI tasks: “I am in the outside elevator of Sears Tower, seeing the whole world.” Well, that was long before Burj Khalifa, Dubai, existed. Anyway, IMI helped me get many things right, and God knows I needed those insights many times.
Looking back, I have worked with thousands of mostly nice and professional people, I have met very prominent individuals and had many lovely moments with colleagues in all kinds of settings. I am a people person in my heart, and a team builder in my mind, but I have a great need to be just me as well. My achievements are because of all these lovely people who put their heads and power to the tasks. On occasion I may have led my colleagues down one rabbit hole or another, but I never met Alice there, so I guess we did all right.
My last oil and gas engagement was in 2022.
At the age of 70 after a 42-year career in oil and gas, the last years flying a desk and an occasional aircraft; I decided to do something entirely different. I took a CE truck license, meaning I was allowed to drive any combination of truck and trailer in Europe. I became an ice road trucker, driving up and down the spine of Scandinavia, picking up thirty tons of fish in the polar part of Norway, bringing it to mainly southern Scandinavia. That was an existence of sheer enjoyment. Gliding by the wonderful sceneries of Norway and fighting through the snowstorms of Saltfjellet after chaining up. It lasted until I became sick, two years later.
Looking back, I am just exceptionally happy to see my children live meaningful and accomplished lives and count the luck that it is to see my older sister, three younger brothers and three younger sisters here on occasion. Here is at Kullagatan 183, Strandbaden, Sweden, phone +46 70 227 92 30; or Asker, Norway.
I am also blessed to live with my wonderful, and entirely accomplished wife Ping, who followed me into the Norwegian oil industry. We are both Norwegian citizens. And we mustn’t forget our lovely little Mini-Schnauzer GoGo, who is about my age.
Another miracle is to have survived two bouts of cancer and operations. I thank the personnel at Centre Hopitalier Princess Grace, Monaco, for their persistence and skills in helping me out of those situations basically unscathed. And the healing would not have been the same without lovely neighbor friends in Nice, France. Bless them all and bless the providence; I live a normal life again.
Finally, these days I spend time writing both fiction and fact.
I look forward to our 40-year anniversary in June ’24.
Coordinates
Updated 2023-12-06