Norwegian Ambassador to India May-Elin Stener. Photo: Special Arrangement
Switzerland being the most important participant is prone to contribute greater than half of the $100 billion free commerce pact India just lately signed with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), whereas Norway will usher in the remainder, with Iceland and Liechtenstein contributing as properly, Norwegian Ambassador to India, May-Elin Stener, informed The Hindu
India signed a four-nation commerce pact with EFTA international locations: Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, on March 10, aiming to draw $100 billion and to create a million jobs in 15 years in change for tariff concessions for his or her pharma, chemical and minerals.
“The interest in India is high among Norwegian companies. Some 130 Norwegian companies are already in India with Mumbai and Bengaluru housing most of them. Through this new EFTA pact, we are expecting many new Norwegian entrants and investments into the Indian markets,” Ms. Stener mentioned.
She mentioned bilateral interactions are already underway between India and Norway, however the pact has now created a framework for such collaborations.
“We are exploring working together in diverse businesses like fisheries, agriculture, maritime, blue economy and energy transition technologies. Norway is a big global maritime player and we are a superpower in the oil and gas front and so we have a lot of expertise in these areas which we can share,” Ms. Stener defined.
On what Norway expects from India on sustainability, climate-related initiatives and inexperienced applied sciences, she mentioned, India’s ambitions in these areas had been already excessive .“Norway needs to actively contribute to India’s objectives it has set in these areas. Some of the applied sciences we use within the oil and fuel sector can be utilized in inexperienced vitality options by Indian gamers,’‘ she added.
On expansion of collaborations in the maritime sector, the ambassador said, there were many underway between the two countries already. “Many Indian sailors are working on Norwegian ships globally. We see a lot of additional possibilities in working together on port management technologies, goods movement, shipping etc. We use some of the electrical ferries made in India in Norway,’‘ Ms. Stener mentioned.
