Norway, Nigeria trade volume close to $40bn

NORWEGIAN Ambassador to Nigeria, Jens-Petter Kjemprud, says trade volume between Norway and Nigeria is between 30 and 40 billion dollars.

Kjemprud, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Friday, said the relationship between the two countries was cordial.

“The volume of trade between the two countries is so difficult to say because most of the trade is being done with multinational companies, but we estimate it to be between 30 and 40 billion dollars a year,” he said.

According to him, the relationship between Nigeria and Norway dated back to 1880s.

“Norway started to export fish to Nigeria in the 1880s and 1890; the relationship was cordial until independent.

“However, from the last ten or 20 years, it has grown substantially both politically and economically.

We now have more than 50 and 60 Norwegian companies active in Nigerian oil and gas sector, sub-sea, onshore, renewable energy and some of which is expanding.

He pledged to strengthen the relationship between the two countries by attracting more investors from Norway to explore available opportunities in Nigeria.

He also said that the embassy was working closely with the Nigeria-Norwegian Chamber of Commerce to promote and expand businesses between the two countries.

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According to the envoy, there are more opportunities for Nigerian to do business in Norway.

“I think in the oil sector there could be more reciprocating in investment and cooperation.

“Only this week there is going to be a huge investment contract in the service sector to be signed in Nigeria with Singaporean and Norwegian Companies,” he said.