Last week Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce had its Annual General Assembly and a seminar about the status quo and learnings about the Norwegian companies in Lithuania and Lithuanian companies in Norway. Gathering was open for all who are interested in Lithuanian-Norwegian business cooperation.We had a pleasure to welcome nearly 40 representatives from different companies from both Lithuania and Norway and the Headquarters of DNB in Oslo.The goal of the gathering was to exchange learnings and give better insights in the status of the Norwegian investments in Lithuania, but also learn more about how Lithuanian companies in Norway are viewing the challenges and advantages of working in the Norwegian market.

Photo: Mantas Grigaliunas

Former Ambassador of Norway to Lithuania Mr Leif Arne Ulland shared some valuable insights into the status of Norwegian investments in Norway. According to the recent data the Norway is soon to be the 4th biggest investment country in Lithuania. Lithuania exports 5 times more to Norway, than Norway to Lithuania. However, Lithuania is an important transit country for Norwegian product going to other countries, such like Kazakhstan. Lithuanian investments in Norway are rather marginal and results to bare 0.93 mil. LTL. About 45% of the Norwegian investments are based in Vilnius. Norway has a strong business presence via collaboration called “Team Norway”, gathering Norwegian Embassy in Norway, Honorary Consuls in Lithuania, Norwegian-Lithuanian Chamber of Commerce and business people with a long experience doing business between the two countries. Mr. Ulland stressed the importance of establishing such a collaboration in Norway, also the need of establishing “Team Lithuania” network.

Many of our guests were impressed with the presentations of two Lithuanian business professionals Ausra Vankeviciute from Staticus Norway AS and Paulius Kvedaras from Kvedaru Ukis.

Photo: Mantas Grigaliunas

Ausra Vankeviciute is a CEO of a Lithuanian steel construction company with 390 employees and a turnover over 35 MLN EUR. She explained that Staticus became so successful in Norway only because they were met with trust by many Norwegian institutions and companies. Ms Vankeviciute stressed the importance of focusing on quality, not quantity, and having the right certificates for the job that the company wants to do. In 2013 Staticus was voted to be Lithuanian Exporter of the year.

Paulius Kvedaras represented a family business from Lithuanian – Kvedaru Ukis, with an established and sound business in Lithuania. However due to the changing political landscape Kvedaru Ukis decided to explore the business possibilities in Scandinavia, and first and foremost in Norway. Mr Kvedaras admitted that it is not easy to find the information about the Norwegian market in English, but was impressed with the competence and service level he met in his encounter with the Norwegian Custom Office. His presentation of how Kvedaru Ukis is executing market research about Norway impressed even the most experienced business professionals in the audience. Some of them even applauded Mr Kvedaras for a perfect schoolbook example of how to do a market research.

After the presentations everybody had a chance to get to know each other closer by sharing a platter of the most delicious tapas and Spanish vine, specially selected for the occasion by, Hjørdis B. Rasmussen from DNB, who assisted LNCC in organising this great event. Big thanks to Ms Rasmussen.

Quite a few of our guests found relevant business contacts during the gathering. This makes our event a total success for the Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce, especially because our goal is to establish a lasting business network in Norway, that could gather business professionals from both countries and in this way strengthen the business relations between Norway and Lithuania.

For photos after the event, please visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ltchamber

Photo: Mantas Grigaliunas

Photo: Mantas Grigaliunas

We welcome present and prospect members to a seminar and LNCC General Assembly.

16:00   REGISTRATION
16:30   ANNUAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY
16:45   SEMINAR: Norwegian companies in Lithuania and Lithuanian companies in Norway – status quo and learnings

• “Norwegian businesses in Lithuania” by Mr Leif Arne Ulland, former Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to the Republic of Lithuania
• “Building a successful Lithuanian business in Norway” by Ausra Vankeviciute, CEO Staticus Norge AS
• “Market research in Norway – a newcomer’s view into the Norwegian market” by Paulius Kvedaras, Kvedaru Ukis

17:30   SNACKS & DRINKS

Date: February 10th, 2015
Time: 16:00-19:00
Venue: DNB Headquarters, Dronning Eufemias gate 30, 0191 Oslo
Dress Code: Business Casual
Registration: Closed

Visma is proud, in cooperation with Difi (Agency for Public Management and eGovernment), to invite you to a seminar regarding public procurement in Norway. The seminar is in English and is free of charge.

The Norwegian public sector is an important market. Annually public entities buy goods and services for approximately NOK 400 billion. The contracts vary widely in scope, which implies that both Norwegian or non-Norwegian private enterprises should be able to tender for profitable opportunities. The seminar will cover topics as:

• How to find public tender invitations
• How to qualify for participating in tenders
• Issues that non-Norwegian enterprises must know
• Filing of tender documents
• e-invoicing
• Legal issues – handling of complaints

Time: Thursday 22 January 2015. Registration 08.45-09.00, seminar 09.00-11.30. Where: Visma building at Bjørvika, Dronning Eufemias gate 16. BNCC

You can register here.

At the previous Extraordinary General Assembly, on the 3rd of December, Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce elected  Hans Petter Evensen as a new member of the board.

Hans Petter joins LNCC as a representative of DNB and has a long Business Development background. Until recently he has been living and working in Lithuania as a Head of Product Development for the Baltics, DNB.

We are very happy to welcome Hans Petter Evnsen as a our new team member and we look forward working together.

Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce (LNCC) in cooperation with the Lithuanian community in Bergen (BLB) and Startup Weekend Bergenis welcoming to a discussion meeting on how to build the entrepreneurship culture among the Lithuanians in Norway.

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       During event we will introduce you to LNCC activities and goals, we will share information about business environment and entrepreneurial experience in Norway, we will introduce you to one of the great opportunities to build up a team of professionals and start your own business, and invite for open discussion in order to find out the real challenges of starting and developing business in Norway.

PROGRAMME:

– Opening note by Edita Jakubkiene, BLB Director.

– Vita Melinauskaite, Managing Director, LNCC will present organization and activities.

– Giedrius Statulevicius, Serial Entrepreneur, sharing his experiences of entering the entrepreneurship culture and environment in Norway.

– Startup Weekend Bergen will present their event.

– Open discussion and Workshop “Challenges starting and developing business in Norway”

Date:  2014 10 19d.,  12:00

Place: Christiesgate 16, 5015 Bergen. St. Paul school, 2floor.

Register:

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Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with Oslo International Hub is welcoming to a discussion meeting on how to build the entrepreneurship culture among the Lithuanians in Norway.

Foreign enterprises conducting business activities in Norway are met with a vast number of compliance obligations. Before starting business operations the enterprise must register itself with public authorities, it must register the contract and the employee, and the enterprise must periodically fi le reports related to income tax, VAT, etc.

There are also important rules related to employees’ benefits e.g. minimum wages, maximum working hours and overtime pay.

During the seminar experienced lawyers of Visma Advokater will guide you through the most essential rules related to
conducting business in Norway in order to be competitive and to avoid pitfalls and punitive sanctions.

The seminar will be held in English and take place on Thursday 25 September in the Visma building at Bjørvika, Dronning
Eufemias gate 16 (entrance from Trelastgata).

07:45: Registration & coffee
08:00-10:00: Seminar with breakfast break

Free of charge.

Welcome!

Sign up here

Last week LNCC was invited by the Norwegian-Latvian Culture Society to the meeting for Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Culture Societies in Oslo, as well as the Norwegian-Latvian Chamber of Commerce to discuss how all these organisations could work together through joint meetings and projects.

We were welcomed by Latvian Ambassador to Norway H.E. Mr. Indulis Ābelis, who welcomed the initiative to work together and expressed his interest to support common efforts in the future.

It is important that we all find an active part in the society that we live in. Therefore, we congratulate this initiative to join forces to build an even better cultural offer for Norway.

INVITATION TO THE OPENING RECEPTION FOR THE LITHUANIAN-NORWEGIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce is inviting to the Opening Reception at the Lithuanian Embassy in Oslo for the newly established Chamber. The establishment of this Chamber is an important milestone in developing stronger business relations between Lithuania and Norway.

PROGRAMME:

16.30 REGISTRATION

17.00 OPENING OF LITHUANIAN-NORWEGIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

• Mr. Aleksandras Laurinavičius, Commercial attaché, Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania to the Kingdom of Norway
• Ms. Dilek Ayhan, State Secretary, Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries
• Mr. Dag M. Halvorsen, Norwegian Ambassador  – Designate to Lithuania
• Martin Bodd, Honorary Consul in Norway (Oslo), The Honorary Consulate of the Republic of Lithuania to the Kingdom of Norway/Board Member, Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce (LNCC)

17:30 BREAK & SNACKS

17:50 PERSPECTIVES ON ESTABLISHING A NEW CHAMBER

• Ms. Birutė Kunciutė, Director, Norwegian-Lithuanian Chamber of Commerce (NLCC, Vilnius)
• Mr. Arvydas Arnašius, Director General, Invest Lithuania
• Ms. Eli Folkestadås, former chairwoman of the British-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce
• Mr. Lars-Kåre Legernes, Director, Oslo Chamber of Commerce

18:10 NETWORKING OPPORTUNITY

19.00 END OF THE OFFICIAL PROGRAMME

Date: August 28, 2014
Time: 17:00-19:00
Venue: Lithuanian Embassy in Oslo, Norway. Dronningens gate 3, N-0244 Oslo
Dress code: Business Casual
Registration: Registration to the event is closed.

On the 5th and 6th of June Lithuanian-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce had the pleasure to be invited to welcome an international business delegation – this time 30+ CEOs from the Baltics, most of them coming from Lithuania.

The delegation met the representatives from DNB, Selvaag, Gjensidige, Innovation Norway, Höegh LNG, Ministry of Trade and Industry and Oslo Børs. The aim of the delegation was to invite the CEOs from the Baltics to learn the best practice of Corporate Governance and promote the Baltic region as a business partner.

Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance is an internationally recognized driver of best practice corporate governance in the Baltic region. The organisation works at promoting global competitiveness of Baltic companies through adoption of leading corporate governance practices.

For more information about the Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance.

For more memorable moments after the Baltic Institute of Corporate Governance’s delegation visit in Oslo, please view their Facebook