The El 8 was an electric locomotive for mixed traffic that was introduced in World War II. It was based on the German E 18, but due to the lower axle loads which were permitted in Norway it was a scaled-down version that was shorter, lighter and less powerful. Like its prototype, it had four driving axles in the main frame and one leading axle at each end. In contrast to the E 18 it had no bogies which connected the leading axles to the adjacent driving axle, and so they did not have good running characteristics in curves.

Between 1940 and 1949, 16 were built by Thunes and NEBB. In 1943, No. 2059 was heavily damaged when 800 tonnes of ammunition exploded on board of the ship “Selma” in the port of Filipstad. The locomotive was repaired again after the war. In the fifties, new bogie locomotives of the types El 11 and El 13 were introduced which had better running characteristics. However, the El8 was only withdrawn between 1981 and 1987,