[Kjeldahl]

Surprised nobody mentioned that the whole fund and its future returns have been promised away already as future pension for the people working for the government (far too many). This is due to politicians and a too large part of the population that mistake "feeling good" as "being smart", and failure to recognize that the economic model that has worked for as long as the oil revenues kept flowing in, will stop working once the oil revenues start declining. There is no frugality, and all the traditional parties on the right/conservative side would be characterized as socialist in most other developed countries. And as the government overspending keeps growing, so do the taxes...

[andness]

The "About the fund" page has a section called "The fund's purpose and history" which seems to completely contradict what you're saying.

[marvin]

It's a contentious political question, and it's impossible to make predictions about how the fund might eventually be emptied. We could easily end up on a track that would empty the fund in 50 years, but of course you'd hope the electorate is wise enough not to let this happen.