ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that the political ideologies and institutional architectures of the neoliberal period in Norway influences current attempts at breaking with the said period under the auspices of achieving a green transition. Through a historical analysis of the governance of state-owned enterprises in Norway, the chapter shows that these have become unavailable as policy tools for governments wanting a “stronger” and “more active” state pursuing decarbonization. Governments are thus left with policies of so-called derisking, aiming to “produce investibility” in green energy for private capital, essentially subsidizing profits rather than engaging in direct public investment. The chapter ends with a discussion of what accounts for the durability of the neoliberal state–capital relationship in the age of the new active state.
