NORWEGIAN-UKRAINIAN

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

ANNUAL REPORT

2020
WWW.NUCC.NO
150
WELCOME TO NUCC!
Bringing business together to a sustainable future
100

NUCC is a non-profit, non-political membership

organization, existing to actively work for:
50 - Increased business cooperation between Norway and
Ukraine
- Enabling members to benefit from bilateral business
opportunities
0 - A positive economic development in Ukraine 
2017 2018 2019 2020
Contributing to an improved Ukrainian Business
Climate, and raising awareness in Norway about the
As of end of December 2020, opportunities in Ukraine, is a long-term project, but our
the association had 135 efforts are showing good results. 
paying members: 51 Our main priority in 2020 was to continue facilitating
Norwegian and 84 Ukrainian. bilateral B2B contacts, raise the interest of Ukraine in
This constitutes a very the Norwegian business community, and scale up the
activities in our sector projects.
positive increase of 15 % yoy.

SECTORS IN FOCUS

Norwegian
members Energy and ICT and
37.8% Tourism
Professional Services
infrastructure

Ukrainian
members
62.2%
Agriculture Seafood Manufacturing

ABOUT NUCC
 NUCC TEAM
Kjartan Tveitnes Linda Skjold Oksnes Anatolii Kyryliuk
worked as full time worked as full time Project worked as full time
Managing Director Manager until 31st of Project Manager
throughout report March 2020, when she left throughout the report
period. the position. period. 

Nataliya Sjøvoll Stian Halsen worked as Anastasiia Antonyk

worked as full time a full time Project worked as full time
Project Manager Manager starting in April Project Manager
throughout the report 2020. throughout the report
period. period.

Dmitry Primak worked Our interns:

as local advisor in Kyiv, Axel Engh Ringstad (February – August 2020),
on a temporary Kent Rosenby (February – June 2020),
contract with NUCC Petra Karlsen Stangvik (from September 2020).
throughout report
period

BOARD OF DIRECTORS
At our Annual Meeting on May 28th, 2020 the new Board of Directors was elected
with further formation at the first board meeting at August 20th:

Ketil E. Bøe, Wikborg Rein - Chairperson

Øyvind Sætren, Pelagia - Deputy Chairperson
Frode Mellemvik, High North Center of Research and Governance/Nord University
Arne Mjøs, Itera ASA
Thorstein Jenssen, with Børge Tvorg as deputy, NBT
Jeanette Louise Small, with Marius Haslund as deputy, TietoEVRY ASA
Ann-Mari Lillejord, Scatec Solar ASA
Christian Svensson, N-iX Nordic AB
 NUCC GOALS 2020
SHORT TERM GOALS
AND ACHIEVEMENTS
Trade volume:
20% targeted growth.

Estimated joint trade in goods and service increased

annually by 10 % in 2020. Investment decisions from
Norwegian energy companies involved in Ukraine
accounted for an estimated 2 billion NOK Foreign Direct
Investment to Ukraine in 2020, constituting an impressive
19% of all real* FDI to Ukraine last year.

*FDI excluding reinvestments of earnings/round-tripping

 
Business facilitation: 
19 MoUs targeted for the project year 2020. 
Approx. 59 B2B facilitations registered. 

Members: 
Norwegian paying members:
> 48 members – 51 reached 
Ukrainian paying members: 
> 54 members – 84 reached
25 new members in 2020, 14 companies exited – very good
retention rate compared to the previous years. MEDIA AND
COMMUNICATIONS
Facebook: 7 700+ followers
Increase 4,7% compared to 2019

Instagram: 720+ followers

Audience remained on the same level as in 2019

LinkedIn: 900+ followers

Increase 80% compared to 2019

Newsletters: 5 newsletters with 1500+ subscribers

Website: 16 590 unique visitors in 2020

 NUCC ACTIVITIES 2020

Focus areas in 2020:

Contribute to an improved Ukrainian Business Climate
Raise interest in the Norwegian business community
Support members and businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic
Continue to focus on our five sector projects plus starting a new Tourism project

Main events and activities in 2020: 

3 larger networking meetings/forums:

Ukrainian stand at the Norwegian Travel Fair in January 2020
How to attract Norwegian Business to Ukraine? in cooperation with Arzinger in
Kyiv , February 2020. Followed up with an Embassy reception in Kyiv. In
connection with the visit of State Secretary Halvorsen.
Emerging Ukraine: Europe's new growth engine? – a digital networking forum in
November 2020, with stage production in both Oslo and Kyiv. In connection with
the Bilateral Trade Commission meeting.
Breakfast seminar with NHO: How to handle IT-security in outsourcing? in February
2020. In connection with visit of Deputy Minister of Digitalisation Oleksandr
Bornyakov.
A series of webinars about new rules and regulations during the pandemic in
cooperation with our law members in period of March 2020 – April 2020.
Innovation Sprint – a competition in cooperation with our member SFox Model in
search for ideas that can contribute to solving challenges during the pandemic in
May 2020.
Online event in collaboration with NUPI on the first year of presidency of Zelenskiy
in June 2020.
In the Footsteps of the Vikings: photo and video competition aimed to promote
Ukraine as a tourist destination among Norwegians in June 2020.
A series of webinars aimed to research new opportunities for bilateral cooperation
for different sectors (pharma, film production, outsourcing, energy, textile, furniture
etc) throughout the year 2020.
Online B2B meetings between Norwegian and Ukrainian companies (IT, textile,
furniture) in the fall 2020.
Online event on Good Corporate Governance in December 2020.
Meetups for the Young Entrepreneurs alumni in both Oslo and Kyiv fall-winter
2020.
…and much more!
 NUCC PROJECTS IN 2020
Good Corporate Governance and Business Development
We contribute to sustainable bilateral business cooperation, through creating sustainably themed business arenas with
emphasis on Good Corporate Governance, Anti Corruption and the Rule of Law. We aim to improve bilateral business
knowledge and cross-cultural understanding, to increase interest for business interaction between Ukraine and Norway.

Throughout 2020 the Chamber organized a series of online webinars and networking event with sustainable and business
development topics, not the least in the wake of the pandemic. Organizing of the annual Young Entrepreneurs program for
class of 2020 was deemed not possible due to COVID-restrictions. Class of 2020 will be provided an opportunity to join in 2021

Seafood and Agriculture

ICT
In 2020 we continued to support IT members and
share information about opportunities of the ICT
sector for bilateral cooperation. Our team:
provided support to NUCC’s ICT members and
other Norwegian and Ukrainian companies.
facilitated introductions between potential
business partners.
informed Norwegian businesses about
opportunities in the Ukrainian ICT sector
focused on IT-security in bilateral cooperation
organized meetings for the Ukrainian
delegations during their visit to Norway
visited the Oslo Chamber of Commerce to
present and showcase opportunities within
Ukrainian IT.
organized Innovation Sprint – a competition in
cooperation with our member SFox Model in
search of ideas that could contribute to solving
challenges during the pandemic.
developed the IT-portal for Norwegian
companies
More than 80 % of seafood consumed in Ukraine is
imported, while Norway imports agricultural
products worth 70 BILL. NOK annually. Taking the
comparative advantages of the Norwegian and
Ukrainian economies into account this bodes well
for future increase of bilateral trade. Our team:
followed-up ongoing bilateral business contacts
in the agri-sphere. Increased focus put on the
aquaculture feed industry.
continued to work with increasing awareness of
Ukraine’s strong agricultural position among the
Norwegian market players. In addition to the
traditional trade in commodities and food, new
links under agricultural technology have been
established.
followed-up ongoing bilateral business contacts
in the seafood sector and will continue to do so
throughout the project period.
worked together with partners on mapping
opportunities for re-processing Norwegian
seafood in Ukraine.
created together with members PEM
Convention guide and presented to relevant
seafood actors.

Tourism Manufacturing

A new project was started in January 2019 aiming to
promote Ukraine as a tourism destination among
Norwegians. We believe that SAS direct flights,
outstanding cuisine, affordable prices and common
historical background between Ukraine and
Scandinavia open enormous potential for
cooperation in the tourism sector. However, this
project was hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic
in 2020. Despite the challenges due to the
coronavirus, our team:
organised in cooperation with partners and
members "Ukraine-stand" at Norway's largest
tourism fair with around 23 000 visitors.
conducted a series of B2B meetings during the
first networking event in January 2020
worked with the Norwegian media to increase
awareness about Ukraine among Norwegian
tourists.
When it comes to the production of goods, Ukraine
continued to be one of the most attractive countries
for business cooperation in manufacturing in 2020.
NUCC continued its work to build up the
Manufacturing project that was started in 2019. Our
team:
in the light of COVID-19 supported businesses
working with goods production helping with
information on new regulations and legal
changes conducting a series of online meetups
on topics connected to the pandemic.
facilitated introductions between potential
business partners.
developed together with partners a market
analysis identifying TOP10 sectors with the most
potential for deepening bilateral cooperation in
the production of goods.
conducted a series of online networking events
with specialists within different sectors to
identify opportunities and build up connections.

Energy

2020 was a challenging year for the Norwegian energy companies working in Ukraine due to a few factors: 1) deficit in the
budget of Guaranteed Buyer, 2) debts in payment for the produced electricity, 3) delays in issuing certificates for
connecting to the grid for new stations. These factors created insecurity among the investors. In 2020 the FDI generated
by Norwegian energy companies reached more than 2 bill. NOK which is decrease form the record high previous year, but
still impressive result in the light of the negative FDI in Ukraine in general. Our team:
provided support to our energy members in reaching out to the media for delivering their message to the key
government officials and decision makers.
run several digital events aiming to gain a broader and deeper understanding among the Norwegian energy
companies about the potential for increase cooperation with the Ukrainian energy sector.
organized a number of B2B meetings resulting in dialogues which we hope to turn into business cooperation.
initiated a dialogue between the Ukrainian national company Naftogaz and Norwegian association of the energy
service companies with unique technologies and necessary competence for exploration and production of the
hydrocarbons offshore, since Ukraine finally granted a license for the exploration and development of the offshore gas
fields on the Black Sea to Naftogaz.
 COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS
AND REGULATIONS

NUCC has established a compliance framework in form of a Governing Principles

document, which sets out the organization structure and internal control. Being a
member organisation working with Norwegian-Ukrainian trade relations it is important
to lead by example and NUCC has set up a Compliance Committee to ensure that the
NUCC compliance framework is strictly adhered to.

The NUCC Administration and the Compliance Committee has continuous contact
throughout the year, and minimum one meeting prior to the General Assembly to clarify
any needs or actions points that might have come up.

During the reporting year 2020 the Compliance Committee, in dialogue with the NUCC
administration, has not identified any notable compliance risks. The Compliance
Committee held its annual meeting in April 2021 and identified neither any compliance
issues that require Board involvement nor any need for changes in the compliance
framework. The Committee confirms that NUCC has complied with its Governing
Principles.

HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT AND

SAFETY:
NUCC has a good working environment and low absence rate from work. NUCC
activities does not entail environmental pollution of significance. Gender equality is
taken into account in recruiting activities and both genders are represented in the staff
and in our Board of Directors. We endorse the clear message from the Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs that all sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse are
completely unacceptable. These are issues that NUCC will uphold in all our conduct and
will hold our partners to the same principles.

Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the NUCC staff was able to have home office during
national and local lockdowns as suggested by the Norwegian authorities.
 FINANCIAL RESULTS 2020

The Chamber's main income to work for our members is the membership fee. In addition NUCC
receive substantial financial project support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
which provides NUCC the possibility for increased activity in the support period. It must also be
noted that member companies, partners and in particular the NUCC Board of Directors provide
substantial resources in terms of pro bono use of their time, travels and free venues.

Comments:

NUCC had considerable less expenditures in 2020 than budgeted, due to COVID-restrictions.
The NUCC team quickly managed to reorient, be creative and has delivered very good results.
However, some activities did have to be fully postponed or cancelled, in light of the pandemic
situation.

In September 2020 NUCC successfully held it's annual progress report meeting with the
Norwegian MFA on project Ukr-19/0001. In addition, activity and financial reports are provided
to and communicated with the Norwegian MFA throughout the year.

In accordance with section 3-3a of the Accounting Act, the Board confirm that the financial
statements have been prepared under the going concern assumption. This assumption is
based on profit forecasts for the year 2021 and the Chamber's long-term strategic forecasts.
The Chamber's economic and financial position is sound.
 ANNUAL REPORT APPROVAL
BY SIGNATURE

NUCC Board of Directors

April 22nd 2021
Board meeting

Ketil E. Bøe, Øyvind Sætren, Christian Svensson

Chairperson Deputy Chairperson

Ann-Mari Lillejord Jeanette Small, Arne Mjøs

with deputy
Marius Haslund

Thorstein Jenssen Frode Mellemvik Kjartan Tveitnes,

Managing Director