Henrik Poulsen

Henrik Poulsen
Nationality	Danish
Occupation	Business executive
Title	Former CEO of Ørsted
Employer	Novo Nordisk (board member, until 2025)
Known for	CEO of Ørsted (2012–2021), leading the company's transformation from fossil fuels to renewable energy

Henrik Poulsen is a Danish business executive who served as the chief executive officer of Ørsted (formerly DONG Energy) from 2012 to 2021. During his tenure, Poulsen oversaw one of the most significant corporate transformations in the European energy sector, steering the Danish energy company away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy, particularly offshore wind power. Under his leadership, the company rebranded from DONG Energy (an acronym for Danish Oil and Natural Gas) to Ørsted — named after the Danish physicist Hans Christian Ørsted — and became one of the world's largest developers of offshore wind farms. Poulsen resigned as CEO in June 2020 and continued in the role until January 31, 2021. Following his departure from Ørsted, Poulsen served as vice chairman of the board of directors at Novo Nordisk, a position from which he departed in October 2025 amid reported disagreements within the board.

Career

Pre-Ørsted career

Before joining Ørsted, Henrik Poulsen built a career in senior management across several major Danish and international corporations. His prior executive experience positioned him as a candidate capable of leading a large-scale industrial transformation when he was appointed to head DONG Energy in 2012.

CEO of Ørsted (2012–2021)

Henrik Poulsen joined DONG Energy as CEO in 2012. According to reporting by European CEO, Poulsen recognized the company's potential to become a leader in the renewable energy space from his first day in the role. At the time of his appointment, DONG Energy was a diversified energy company with significant operations in oil, natural gas, and coal-fired power generation, in addition to a growing but still secondary portfolio of offshore wind energy assets.

Under Poulsen's leadership, the company undertook a fundamental strategic shift. The core of this transformation involved divesting the company's oil and gas assets and coal-fired power plants while dramatically expanding its investments in offshore wind energy. This repositioning was among the most ambitious energy transitions undertaken by a major European utility company during the 2010s.

A significant milestone in this transformation was the company's rebranding. DONG Energy, whose very name — an acronym for Danish Oil and Natural Gas — reflected its fossil fuel heritage, was renamed Ørsted in honor of the Danish scientist Hans Christian Ørsted, who discovered electromagnetism. The rebranding signaled the company's full commitment to clean energy and its departure from its origins in hydrocarbon extraction and combustion.

Expansion into the United States

Under Poulsen's leadership, Ørsted expanded its renewable energy operations beyond Europe and into the United States. In August 2018, Ørsted announced the acquisition of Lincoln Clean Energy, an American onshore wind developer. The deal was structured as the acquisition of 100% equity from global infrastructure investment manager I Squared Capital and management shareholders. This acquisition marked a significant step in Ørsted's strategy to establish a presence in the American renewable energy market, complementing its existing offshore wind development activities in U.S. waters.

The Lincoln Clean Energy acquisition demonstrated the breadth of Poulsen's vision for Ørsted, extending the company's capabilities beyond its core strength in offshore wind to include onshore wind development, thereby diversifying its renewable energy portfolio while entering one of the world's largest energy markets.

Resignation

On June 15, 2020, Ørsted announced that Henrik Poulsen had resigned his position as CEO after eight years in the role. The company stated that Poulsen would continue serving as CEO until January 31, 2021, to allow for an orderly transition. The board of directors initiated a process to identify Ørsted's next CEO.

Reporting by offshoreWIND.biz confirmed the resignation and noted the significance of Poulsen's eight-year tenure, during which the company had been fundamentally reshaped. During Poulsen's time as chief executive, the company had transitioned from a fossil fuel–dependent energy conglomerate to one of the world's leading renewable energy companies, undergone a complete rebranding, been listed on the stock exchange, and expanded into international markets including the United States.

Novo Nordisk board role (post-Ørsted)

Following his departure from Ørsted, Poulsen assumed a prominent governance role at Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company, where he served as vice chairman of the board of directors. In October 2025, Poulsen confirmed his departure from this position. In an interview with MedWatch, Poulsen stated that "stepping aside is the only right thing to do," acknowledging that his departure was the result of major disagreements within the board.

The circumstances of Poulsen's departure from Novo Nordisk attracted significant media attention. The pharmaceutical company had experienced what MedWatch described as "board chaos," and Poulsen's exit was part of a broader period of governance upheaval at the organization. In connection with changes at the Novo Nordisk board level, Novo Holdings — the controlling shareholder of Novo Nordisk — also announced plans to make changes to its own board of directors, with Lars Green, who had more than 30 years of leadership experience in the healthcare and life science industries and had joined Novo Nordisk in 1992, being mentioned in the context of those changes.

Legacy

Henrik Poulsen's tenure at Ørsted is primarily associated with the company's transformation from a fossil fuel–based energy company into a global leader in renewable energy, particularly offshore wind power. The strategic pivot that Poulsen directed — divesting oil, gas, and coal assets while investing heavily in wind energy — became a frequently cited case study in corporate energy transition.

European CEO profiled Poulsen in 2018, characterizing the transformation of Ørsted under his leadership as a defining example of how established energy companies could pivot toward clean energy. The rebranding from DONG Energy to Ørsted, completed during his time as CEO, served as a public declaration of the company's new identity and strategic direction.

The acquisitions Poulsen oversaw, including the purchase of Lincoln Clean Energy in 2018, expanded Ørsted's geographic footprint and diversified its renewable energy capabilities beyond offshore wind into onshore wind development in the United States. This international expansion contributed to Ørsted's position as one of the largest renewable energy companies globally by the time of Poulsen's departure.

Poulsen's post-Ørsted career, including his board role at Novo Nordisk, placed him at the center of corporate governance at one of Denmark's most prominent companies. His departure from the Novo Nordisk board in 2025 under circumstances he described as involving fundamental disagreements underscored the challenges of governance at major Danish corporations.