Anders Haavik-Nilsen

Director of the Department for Operations and Readiness Norwegian Defence Estates Agency

Mr. Anders Haavik-Nilsen began his military career in the Norwegian Army in 1991. He has operational experience from service in northern Norway and has served in Afghanistan as Chief Engineer. He has held several key educational and leadership positions, including roles at the Army Weapons School and as Commander of the Engineering Program at the Norwegian Military Academy. He also served as Commander of the Armored Vehicle Section at the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency and held a staff position in the Department for Defence Policy and Long-Term Planning at the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Defence. Mr. Haavik-Nilsen is a graduate of the Command School in Weapons Technology, the Norwegian Military Academy, and the Norwegian National Staff College. Mr. Haavik-Nilsen holds a Master’s degree in Technology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and a Master’s degree in Management from BI Norwegian Business School. In January 2022, he joined the Norwegian Defence Estates Agency as Head of the Department for Research and Development at the National Centre for Protection of Buildings. In January 2023, he was appointed Head of the National Centre for Protection of Buildings. On 1 August 2025, Haavik-Nilsen was appointed Acting Director of the Department for Operations and Readiness, established earlier that year. The department is responsible for preventive security, operational management, and the Defence Estates Agency’s operations center. It supports the agency’s leadership and collaborates closely with other departments in fulfilling tasks assigned by the Ministry of Defence and the Chief of Defence. The department is staffed with highly experienced personnel with broad security and military expertise.