LIAA opens Invest in Latvia office in Norway

The Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) has expanded the Foreign Representative Office in Norway – from September, Evita Nedzvecka, the Head of the Office, will work exclusively with attracting Norwegian investments, becoming an Investment Director, while the new member of the team in Oslo, Austris Keišs, will be responsible for promoting Latvian exports in Norway. 

In terms of investment attraction, Norway is among the 10 largest investors in Latvia. In 2022, Norway and Germany were the leading countries in the number of investment projects attracted to Latvia, which is six. Norway is one of Latvia’s fastest-growing export markets – in 2022, total exports to Norway amounted to EUR 631.9 million, an increase of 33% compared to the previous year. 

“Thus, the expansion of the representative office is a logical and strategic decision, the results of which will be evaluated regularly. By the end of this year, we plan to fully complete the expansion of our representative offices in Sweden and Germany,” states Kaspars Rožkalns, Director of LIAA. 

Around 240 Norwegian capital companies operate in Latvia, providing more than 6000 workplaces.

“We have become a clear leader among the Baltic countries in the last five years in terms of the number of new Norwegian investors attracted, investment amounts, and the number of planned new jobs. 12 new Norwegian companies have entered Latvia, with a total investment of more than EUR 50 million. The companies also plan to create more than 1000 new jobs,” says Evita Nedzvecka, Head of the Representative Office.

Norwegian, the airline, is one of the  best known Norwegian companies to have entered Latvia with LIAA support. According to Dace Lubāne, Head of Norwegian Air Resources Latvia, Riga’s global business services centre has grown to 170 employees in two and a half years.

“What Norwegians appreciate most in Latvia is the similar mentality and work ethic, along with the excellent connection between the two countries,” adds Lubāne.

“The biggest interest in investment opportunities in Latvia comes from Norwegian IT and technology companies, as well as global business service centres. Therefore, I’m glad that the Representative Office will be able to work at double capacity in attracting direct investments and promoting exports,” adds Nedzvecka, commenting on the expansion of the Representative Office. 

“Since 2007, when the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce in Latvia (NCCL) was established, the cooperation between Latvia and Norway has become much closer and more diverse. Today, there is a solid and active Norwegian business community in Latvia – NCCL is one of the largest Chambers of Commerce in Latvia, bringing together more than 100 companies and individual members. When planning various bilateral events and initiatives, we work very closely with the Norwegian Embassy in Latvia, LIAA, other state and municipal institutions, and non-governmental organisations. Therefore, we are positive and optimistic about the expansion of the LIAA Representative Office in Norway, which would provide even more opportunities for cooperation between the two countries,” said Matīss Kukainis, Chairman of the Board of NCCL. 

Source: Press release (www.liaa.gov.lv)
Publicity photo: Evita Nedzvecka, Head of the Representative Office of LIAA in Norway