The Ocean Capital
 

Ocean industries 

Greater Bergen is known for its ocean industries and for being a driver in developing the industries in a greener and more sustainable direction.

Bergen is an old city based on trade of fish to the world, and the old commercial site Bryggen is at UNESCO's World Heritage list. The old Hanseatic wharf is architecturally unique and is perhaps one of the most familiar image in all of Norway and a symbol of our cultural heritage.

Our long history of trading with fish, fisheries and fish farming has characterized the city. Seafood is the backbone of the city and seafood restaurants is popping up. Bergen is now a UNESCO city of gastronomy.

Transforming to the green shift

The city and the surrounding municipalities have a wide range of companies within oil, gas and renewable energy, a big maritime supply chain and several seafood companies, fish farming is an important part og this.

There is a huge transformation in these businesses today. There is an interesting development, particular in how new renewable methods and zero emission solutions are being implemented in all the industries.

Since the industries are gathered in a relatively small city with close and good relations to the R&D environment and the universities, the industries are in fast development to a greener and more sustainable solutions. The cooperation across corporate businesses, investors, entrepreneurs and the public sector is also important for developing the ecosystem and innovative solutions.  

Several companies in the region are now working closely to develop new solutions, ferries on battery, ferries and ships using hydrogen instead of diesel, the oil and gas industries are going into offshore wind and are also looking into the possibilities of producing blue hydrogen at sea.

Crossover between the ocean industries is becoming more and more usual and profitable. The subsea competence and the advanced technology the companies in the ocean industries have developed is now being used across the ocean industries.
 

Do you want to learn more about businesses in Greater Bergen?

Media and fin tech

Bergen is home to media tech companies and fintech companies. 

Bergen has a leading international hub for media and technology innovation, with a Media Lab and a startup lab forming the core of the innovation and research projects. The Norwegian Media Cluster enjoys an innovation ecosystem that works extremely well, with a high degree of joint innovation projects and high innovation speed.

The Norwegian Cognitive Center is also part of the Bergen digital evironment. The center builds competence on AI across industries and public sector, where we provide infrastructure in terms of personnel, know-how and AI platforms.

Bergen is also home to an advanced financial technology hub, developing new digital solutions for the financial sector empowering a thriving Norwegian fintech ecosystem by facilitating technological innovation and collaboration within finance and technology.

Digitalization

Norway is one of the most digitalized counties in the world.

One example is companies that traditionally have delivered services to the media sector now see new biz in subsea and other parts of the ocean industries.

Several tech companies with experience from machine learning, AI and VR now see possibilities in aquaculture. Many tech companies have settled in Bergen during the last years to deliver digital services to fish farmers.

Norwegian are in general higly digital, and are often first movers when it comes to digital solutions and adopting new technology. 

Easy to do business

Norway is ranked among the top 10 countries globally on the “Ease of Doing Business” index

Norway is a safe and easy country for doing business. The World Bank ranks Norway top 10 of 189 countries for Ease of Doing Business, a position Norway has held for several years.

Our population of 5,3 million is modest in size yet still, its purchasing power is comparable to larger economies due to high standard of living and evenly distributed wealth. Most Norwegians are fluent English speakers with French and German frequently spoken as well. Norwegians are generally well educated.

Here is more information on how to get established in Norway. Invest in Bergen is a good supporter and partner for relocation and to start your Norwegian business.