Birger Steen appointed CEO of NORSAR research foundation from 1 April 2025

Birger Steen has been appointed CEO of the independent research foundation NORSAR when Anne Strømmen Lycke retires 1 April this year.
- We are very pleased that Birger will take over when Anne steps down after ten years as CEO of NORSAR. With his extensive international management experience, good understanding of technology and commercial drive, Birger will contribute to further development and growth at a time when NORSAR’s competences and services are more important than ever, says Per Arild Reksnes, Chair of the Board of NORSAR.
With seismology and seismic monitoring as its areas of expertise, NORSAR carries out assignments for Norwegian as well as for Norwegian and international companies. On behalf of Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NORSAR monitors compliance with the Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty, a multilateral treaty that prohibits tests of nuclear weapons. Furthermore, NORSAR is considered Norway's undisputed earthquake expert.
- NORSAR’s mission is to listen to the earth in order to gain insight and contribute to strengthening overall preparedness in Norway and Europe. NORSAR has world-class scientists, recognized technology and exciting growth opportunities through further development and sales of software and services. I look forward to getting to know all the talented people in NORSAR and building on the foundation that Anne and her team have developed over the past decade," says Birger Steen.
Strømmen Lycke has been CEO of NORSAR since 2014. During this period, the foundation has secured ever-increasing research funding, led key research projects and gained international recognition. In a comprehensive evaluation report issued in 2024, the Research Council of Norway highlighted NORSAR’s groundbreaking work in seismology and earthquake monitoring.
- We have managed to attract some of the world’s most talented researchers in our fields, and it is of course they who deserve the credit for the recognition we have received. In addition to our work on the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, we have used our monitoring stations to map incidents and reduced the risk of disinformation in war-torn areas. We have developed technology solutions that monitor landslides and avalanches, injection of CO2 storage on the seabed as well as ice movements in the polar regions. I think we can say that NORSAR makes the world a little safer, says Strømmen Lycke.
Steen has previously been CEO of Microsoft in Norway and Russia and led one of the company's divisions in the United States. He has been CEO of US-based Parallels and has held board positions in Nordea, Schibsted, Cognite and Pagero. He returned to Norway in 2023 and was for a period CEO of FREYR Battery. Today, Steen is Chair of the board of Nordic Semiconductor and Chair of the Digital Norway Advisory Board. Steen holds an MSc in engineering from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU, formerly NTH) and an MBA from INSEAD.
About NORSAR
NORSAR is Norway’s national data center and monitors compliance with the international Test Ban Treaty, which prohibits testing of nuclear weapons. Through NORSAR's extensive network of fiber technology, infrasound and seismic stations, the company can detect abnormal activity related to critical infrastructure in Norway and Europe, including railways, pipelines, and nuclear power plants. NORSAR also monitors weather- and climate-related phenomena, from earthquakes to avalanches and movements in the ice around Svalbard and the polar regions.
NORSAR's solutions help to improve the collection, processing and analysis of data that can, among other things, reduce the risks and costs associated with oil and gas exploration through software solutions for seismic modelling and micro-seismic monitoring. In the future, NORSAR will also monitor CO2 storage facilities established both on land and on the seabed in Norway and internationally.
NORSAR has a strong financial situation with annual revenues of around NOK 100 million. NORSAR has 50 employees, most with PhDs from top international universities. The company is headquartered at Kjeller, north of Oslo, and operates monitoring stations in Svalbard, Bjørnøya, Jan Mayen, Løten, Dronning Maud Land and in Karasjok.
For more information, please contact:
- Per Arild Reksnes, mob. (+47) 48200596
- Birger Steen, mob. (+47) 900 88 222
- Anne Strømmen Lycke, mob. (+47) 977 94 988