Helene Odfjell

Source of wealth: Drilling

60 years female Construction & Engineering 🇳🇴 NO

Net Worth

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Earnings per second

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The scale of their wealth

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Health

The price of life

Let's compare Helene Odfjell's fortune with the healthcare spending of a massive country

Helene Odfjell could fund the entire healthcare system of DR Congo, with a population of over 105,800,000 people, for approximately 0.7 years.

But even if we compare their fortune with that of a rich country

On the other end, Helene Odfjell could cover the healthcare spending of Luxembourg, considered the most heavily funded healthcare system in the world, for 0.3 years.

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Education

Buying the future

Let's also compare their fortune with education spending, first with a poor country

Helene Odfjell could cover the total cost of Nigeria's education system, the most populous country in Africa with over 243,000,000 inhabitants, for 0.5 years.

And yes, we can also compare it with a rich country

But they couldn't just cover the cost of a poor country; Luxembourg is considered the country with the highest per capita investment in education in the world, and Helene Odfjell could pay for it entirely for 0.6 years.

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Research

The monopoly on progress

Coming full circle, we think it's also interesting to add another gigantic country

Helene Odfjell could fully fund the state research budget of Pakistan, the fifth most populous country in the world with over 260,000,000 inhabitants, for 2.7 years.

And of course, the country that invests the most per capita worldwide

But even if we compare the total wealth of Helene Odfjell with Israel, the country that invests the most per capita in research in the world, they could cover the total cost of the system for 0.1 years.

While billions of people struggle to access basic healthcare, education, and research, a single individual could fund entire national systems for centuries.

Gold

Everyday luxuries

Helene Odfjell's fortune is equivalent to 11 tons of gold. It's hard to process, since we don't usually keep a handful of gold bars in our piggy banks.

A standard gold ring usually weighs between 4 and 7 grams. Let's say this one weighs 5 grams. It's usually 18 karats.

Based on today's gold price (excluding the jeweler's commission, shipping, or anything else), that ring would be worth $546.86.

Helene Odfjell could buy 2,888,826 gold rings. That's a lot of fingers and way too many gifts!!

And if you're struggling to visualize that many rings, it would take 1 trucks to transport them. Although Helene Odfjell will almost certainly have enough money left over to pay for the gas.

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Biography

Helene Odfjell is the largest shareholder of Odfjell Drilling, Norway's leading drilling and oil-services group.

The business was founded by her father Abraham Odfjell in 1973 during the early years of the country's oil boom.

She and her sister Marianne inherited Odfjell Drilling, while their brother Johan Odvar Odfjell took over the family's shipping operations in Jo Tankers. In 2015, Marianne exited the drilling company.

Helene Odfjell has been based in the U.K. for decades but relocated to Lugano, Switzerland in 2025.

She is a graduate of the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH) with an MBA from London Business School.