Norway hopes to enhance cooperation with China in various aspects like shipbuilding, fisheries, and green transition, said Tore O. Sandvik, state secretary of Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Fisheries, in Shanghai. The year 2024 marks the 70th anniversary of formal diplomatic ties between China and Norway. Sandvik shared his expectations of future cooperation between the two countries and his visit in Chinese metropolis Shanghai in an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN).
"This is a nice time to visit China, because we're also celebrating 70 years of bilateral diplomatic connections between Norway and China, and then also an opportunity to visit 'Norway Now' to promote Norwegian businesses, to get people in Shanghai, in China to better get known to Norway. And also we want to promote China for Norwegians. This is a good opportunity," he said.
Leading a delegation, Sandvik also visited the Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai on Wednesday, and witnessed the high output of the factory, which currently sits at 100 cars per hour.
He highlighted that the high output is likely a significant factor in Tesla's dominance within the Norwegian electric vehicle (EV) market.
"[I was] really impressed. They told me they are producing 100 cars in an hour. That's really impressive. It was a nice visit. Norway is a leading country in the world for adapting to EVs, almost 25 percent now or every car in Norway is new energy vehicle (NEV). I think close to 90 percent of the new car sales in Norway are EVs," he said.
When asked the expectation of more cooperation between the two countries in the NEV market, Sandvik said he has seen a lot of opportunities for cooperation with China.
"Norway also is a pioneer for the green shift. We are an energy nation. We have produced a lot of oil and gas and one of the main exporters to Europe. But now we have this transition with offshore wind. We are looking into cooperation and collaboration with China in the green shift to de-carbonize the world, which we need to according to the climate challenge. So we see a lot of opportunities for cooperation with China," he said.
With only around 5.5 million population, Norway has one of the longest coastlines in the world, which gives great advantages to the country to develop its maritime sector.
China is the biggest shipbuilder now in the world, Sandvik said, adding that Norway has companies in China in close cooperation with the Chinese market, covering ship building, and delivering technology. He expects to see more cooperation in shipbuilding field between China and Norway.
For cooperation in other sectors, he said, "I know the notion Norwegian salmon is popular here in China. It's a very healthy product from cold and clean Norwegian fjords, and the coast of Norway. So we hope to expand the fish export to China. And of course, as I told you, we are a huge energy nation now in a transition to the green and both in offshore wind, but also as Norway is almost a fully electric country by hydro electric power, which also have forged the EVs in Norway. We think there's a lot to cooperate and to collaborate within this sector with China".
Norwegian official hopes to strengthen cooperation with China
