ICT seminars
The ICT Seminar focused on the ICT industries in Norway and South Africa and on telecommunications, especially the mobile sector, which has seen huge growth in South Africa. There is an opportunity for Norwegian companies to share knowledge and competence in this sector, especially for companies such as Opera Software, offering browser solutions for access to the Internet over mobile phones, and Colibria, looking for opportunities in social networking. Vodacom and MTN provided interesting insight into opportunities for Norwegian companies in the South African market.
The focus then moved to transport infrastructure in roads and electronic tolling and the next generation of air traffic management systems. The South African Roads Agency had visited the Norwegian Public Road Administration (NPRA) in Norway in early 2009 and the two organizations hope to collaborate further. Norwegian company Q-Free is focusing on the South African market and is in the process of considering an agreement with a local partner to represent their electronic tolling systems. The learning experience from Q-Free was that in order to do business in South Africa and compete for public tenders, it is important to work with a company that has BEE-accreditation.
Fredrik Syversen from IKT Norge demonstrates mobile generated internet access to security guard. Photo: Børge Jomås/Innovasjon Norge
Northrop Grumman Park Air Systems presented their perspective of the next generation air traffic management systems and suggested that there could be some areas of synergy with South Africa’s Air Traffic Navigation Services. The Norwegian company is already very active in South Africa and is working closely with Sia Solutions in Pretoria.
Oil and Gas Supplier seminars
A central aim for the seminar on Oil and Gas industry was to provide a forum for Norwegian and South African companies and organizations in this sector to be updated on current and future activity of their counterparts and to stimulate potential future co-operation.
Presentations by Sasol SPI, PetroSA, Petroleum Agency SA and Forest Oil were informative with regards to current and future exploration and the potential of local industry. An overview was also provided of their activity in Sub-Saharan Africa. Presentations by Norwegian companies Sintef Marintek, Petroleum Research and Numerical Rocks highlighted the competency, new technology and services offered to the offshore industry. Marintek also presented a broad summary of their findings as a result of their Norad funded feasibility study done for the South African Oil and Gas Alliance (SAOGA).
At the seminar, Statoil and Sasol SPI delivered an application to the Petroleum Agency SA for an exploration license for the Karoo Basin area. This may lead to future opportunities for Norwegian companies, together with local partners, to offer core sampling and reservoir engineering services.
Statoil and Sasol hand over application for exploration license in the Karoo Basin to the Petroleum Agency SA. Photo: Børge Jomås/Innovasjon Norge
South African companies were offered the opportunity to have brief one on one introductions to the Norwegian companies relevant to their industries. This resulted in 12 meetings during the days before the seminar. This illustrates the interest of South African service companies to engage with Norwegian partners. Companies were also able to organise meetings independent of the seminars with their counterparts, and a lot of such activity was registered.
Seminars on Renewable Energy
A total of 29 Norwegian companies participated in the Renewable Energy component of the Business programme, under the guidance of Intpow, the Renewable Energy Association of Norway. Activities included a Seminar in Cape Town, a seminar and Roundtable discussion in Johannesburg, and a site visit in the Pretoria Area.
The seminar in Cape Town focused on issues around the Independent Power producers, the challenges of Renewable Energy in South Africa, and the experience that Norwegian companies have had in this field. Lively debate characterised the day, and good contacts were made. The seminar in Johannesburg focused mostly on presentations by Norwegian companies on their experience dealing with energy challenges in the Nordic region. The roundtable discussion focused on issues around energy trading, the new Day Ahead Market set up by the SA Power Pool, and the challenges that the large energy users face with Eskom’s monopoly in this market.
The site visit included a visit to a Wind Turbine manufacturing facility in Centurion, which gained a lot of interest from the Norwegian delegation. There was great interest in the potential for this South Africa technology to be used around Africa, but also a suggestion that parts of it could be used in the Norwegian market. The delegation continued the site visit at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). The focus was on CSIR’s research areas within Renewable Energy, in which there is potential for cooperation with Norwegian institutions. Further communication on this has already started. It was interesting to note that several South African companies and journalists expressed great interest in the site visit and requested the opportunity to participate.
A strong connection was established between Intpow and Innovation Norway in Johannesburg, and the plan is to work closely with the companies that took part in the mission in order to ensure continuation of their contacts and interests in SA. There is particular interest in the areas of Hydropower, Wind Energy and Solar Energy, and these three areas will be closely monitored for potential projects and contacts.
Marine Observation seminar
The Marine Observation and Forecasting Seminar focused on efficient resource management and environmental protection, looking at opportunities for bi-lateral co-operation between South African and Norwegian partners within the following areas:
- Marine Observations and coastal zone management
- Improvements through new information available using Earth Observation satellites
- Operational oil spill and ship detection services and harbor monitoring as a toll for increased maritime safety
- How to utilize and incorporate local resources
A Letter of Interest was signed in which the recently formed South African Sea Watch group expressed its interest in and support for closer co-operation with Norway and Norwegian companies. It is of interest to investigate the potential for reviving the Sea Watch program and explore further areas of common oceanographic and coastal engineering interest.
Space 4 Maritime Surveillance is an initiative from space agencies in both Norway and South Africa, together with British partners. The overall objective is to seek solutions for regularly updated information on environmental and maritime activity based on satellite observations.
Round table discussions were held and there will be further follow up in the coming months. The South African group of institutions and companies under the CSIR umbrella have expressed in interest in working together with Norwegian institutions and companies under the Marintek umbrella to look at sustained ocean and coastal observations for scientific and operational purposes. Strong and mutually beneficial partnerships between institutions and private companies specialized in maritime observing systems and technologies will be fundamental.
Seminar on economic growth through knowledge transfer and Trade
The State Visit to South Africa presented a perfect opportunity for Norwegian and South African importers to learn about their respective markets. HSH is a Norwegian Federation with a membership base of Norwegian companies, predominantly Norwegian Importers, looking for opportunities in foreign markets. The main theme conveyed in this seminar, which was convened by HSH, was the need to use brand leadership strategies as a tool to draw on competencies from both the Norwegian and South African business communities.
Organizations such as Wesgro, the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Department of Trade and Industry presented their priority areas and markets of interest for trade. The Business Women’s Association informed about the role of women in business and some of the initiatives undertaken in South Africa to support and connect women in business through support and mentorship.
BAMA, a large Norwegian fruit importer spoke about the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility when accessing new markets. The participants were also informed about Best Practices, the importance of team building, and how culture and leadership play an important role using case studies such as Ikea and Walt Disney.
A memorandum of understanding between HSH and the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce was signed in Johannesburg on the 26 November, by Mr. Carl Otto Lovenskiold (President, HSH) and Mr. Keith Brebnor (CEO, JCCI).