The principle that companies should stick to doing what they know best or to areas of business close to their existing areas of competence is by no means mandatory, but it’s one that any company should consider carefully before venturing into some new business area.

In November, I looked at how the Norwegian oil & gas champion Equinor (once more honestly known as Statoil) was doing with its diversification into renewables. To be fair, Equinor’s experience in the North Sea is of some assistance in building offshore wind farms, but this diversification effort has had its difficulties. Undeterred, the company, supported by its majority shareholder, the Norwegian state, which talks out of both sides of its mouth when it comes to oil and gas, has plowed on: bad luck taxpayers! Bad luck minority shareholders!