The massive fund, which has been built up since the 1990s from the state’s oil revenues, was worth a total of 11 trillion Norwegian kroner (1.1 trillion euros) at the end of March.

In the first quarter, it posted a four percent return, driven by its equity investments, which account for 73.1 percent of its portfolio and rose by 6.6 percent.

“The rise of the equity market was to a great extent driven by the finance and energy sector,” Trond Grande, the fund’s second in command, said in a statement.

The fund also made gains on its real estate investments, which account for 2.5 percent of its assets and were up 1.4 percent, while its fixed-income investments (nearly a quarter of the portfolio) suffered a 3.2 percent loss.

At the same time, the government dipped into its piggy bank to the tune of 83 billion kroner to balance its budget.

Recently the fund made its first direct investment in renewable energy infrastructure.

READ MORE: Norway wealth fund buys first renewable energy stake 

It announced it was purchasing a 50 percent stake in the world’s second-largest offshore wind farm, the Borssele 1 & 2 wind farms located off the coast of the Netherlands in the North Sea.

The 50 percent stake is being acquired from Danish firm Orsted, which will continue to own the remaining 50 percent of the project.