The administrative centre of the municipality and the region of Nordhordland is Knarvik, located in the southeast part of the municipality (30 min. drive from Bergen).
The municipality also has one of the largest oil refineries in northern Europe at its most northern tip. The oil refinery at Mongstad is the largest employer in private sector.

Knarvik
Knarvik (or Knarrviki) is the administrative centre in the municipality of Lindås and the largest town in the region of Nordhordland, Norway. It has about 4,500 inhabitants.
The town is based around Knarvik Center, the largest shopping centre in the region of Nordhordland with 61 stores. The E39 runs straight through the town dividing the town into two major parts. The northern part consists of a larger shopping area covered with glass ceiling while the southern part is still in its original state with scattered buildings and shops.

Knarvik has several kindergartens, a junior high school and a regional high school housing more than 1,000 students.
In recent years population and traffic has increased creating demand for an upgrade of the infrastructure. Rush traffic is an increasingly common sight.

Mongstad
Mongstad is an industrial site located in the municipalities of Lindås and Austrheim in Hordaland, Norway. The first use of the site was in 1975 when Statoil (from 2008 StatoilHydro) opened its refinery. The refinery is the largest in Norway, though medium large after European standard. Its owned by Mongstad Refining, where StatoilHydro owns 79% and Shell owns 21%. All the crude oil that’s refined at Mongstad, comes from the North Sea.

In 2010 StatoilHydro and DONG Energy open Mongstad power station, a natural gas-fired thermal power plant to provide the site with heat energy and electricity, as well as to the Troll gas field. The gas
The port at Mongstad is the largest in Norway, measured in tonnage.

History of Nordhordland and Lindås municipality
Follow the link underneath this article if you are interested in geology, history and development of the area (The Inner Fairway – talk to Europa Nostra summer 2005).

Ever since the ice finally melted, the land around the inner passage in Nordhordland has been populated by humans. We have traces dating back to the Stone Age. Evidence of
their activity came to light when land was excavated in order to construct a bridge at Fosnstraumen. Archaeological digs have uncovered over 60 finds in this area that has been settled for almost 6000 years.

From 1880 B.C to 500 B.C we see growing human settlement. Clan societies based on extended family units developed. Power elites became established. It is probable that many of the farms we find in today’s Nordhordland date back to the Bronze Age.
In the Iron Age deforestation began. Recent research shows that in the period between 300 B.C. to 500 A.D. forests were burnt in order to make all-year heathland grazing possible. Extensive burial mounds and rich grave finds of bronze kettles, gold and glass indicate where the power centres in northern and central Hordaland were located.
Throughout the Viking period (800-1030 A.D.), the sea passages were regular navigation routes and we find a number of well known local cultural artefacts from this period.

In the middle of the 10th century the king established assemblies and an army. Towards the end of the 11th century the Gulating law forced farmers to establish a system of marine defence – the so-called Leidangen. Coastal communities were required to keep a boathouse, a longship, equipment and crews. A system of beacons was set up so to give warning of approaching enemy ships.
Ancient settlements of Vikings are found in several places. At Seim there is a tomb of a Viking king of Norway, King Haakon. At Lindås there are stories of monks coming from England and living with the Viking population.

From 1349, the Black Death claimed the lives of some 60% of Hordaland’s population, but by the early 1600s, the population of Bergen had reached the same level as before the great plague.

Cheap sea transportation led to increased contact between Norway and Europe. The Hanseatic League’s well-developed trading infrastructure secured Norway’s fish exports. As time went by domestic trade increased and the timber and herring trade, via Bergen, linked the surrounding rural districts to European markets.

The parish of Lindaas was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. Masfjorden was separated from Lindås on 1 March 1879. Austrheim was separated from Lindås on 1 January 1910. Alversund, and parts of Hamre and Hosanger, were merged with Lindås on 1 January 1964. (Map: http://www.nordhordlandskart.no )
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the farm Lindås (Old Norse Lindiáss), since the first church was built there. The first element is lindi which means "linden (Tilia) wood", the last element is áss which means "mountain ridge". Before 1921 the name was written "Lindaas".

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 4 May 1979. It shows a canting of a tilia/linden tree.