Lily Sawyer is an in-house writer for EME Outlook Magazine, where she is responsible for interviewing corporate executives and crafting original features for the magazine, corporate...
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Major Nordic corporations and foundations have launched Nordic Compass, a pan-Nordic alliance designed to strengthen European competitiveness through coordinated initiatives across capital markets, deep tech, defence, and energy.
Leading Nordic companies, foundations, and organisations, including tech giants Ericsson and atNorth, have announced the launch of Nordic Compass – The Nordic Round Table for Industry – a new pan-Nordic alliance focused on scaling industrial collaboration across four strategically critical sectors.
Established as an association governed by a board of senior Nordic leaders, the initiative aims to strengthen both Nordic and European competitiveness and resilience through deeper regional cooperation and implementation-driven action.
The alliance will initially focus on Capital Markets, Deep Tech, Defence, and Energy, with the first set of initiatives set to be unveiled at the Nordic Compass Summit in Gothenburg, Sweden, this November.
“With its strong innovation ecosystem, the Nordic region can play a key role in strengthening Europe’s competitiveness. Together with partners across the Nordics, Ericsson will highlight how technology and advanced connectivity can drive sustainable growth for the region and for Europe.”
Nordic Compass has been formed on the premise that, whilst the Nordic region collectively represents one of the world’s largest economies, cooperation between its nations and industries remains underutilised.
Jyrki Katainen, Chair of the Nordic Compass Board, Group Head of Public & Regulatory Affairs at Nordea, former Prime Minister of Finland, and former Vice-President of the European Commission for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness, highlighted the need for faster regional implementation.
“Europe is engaged in a timely debate about competitiveness and renewal. But whilst European-level processes will take time, the Nordics are able to move faster and demonstrate effective implementation. Nordic Compass has been established to realize the opportunity for the Nordic countries and corporates to act together, shape markets, set standards, and power innovation in the most critical sectors of our time.”
Nordic Compass brings together senior leaders from across the Nordic region, with Katainen serving as Chair and Kristin Skogen Lund as Vice-Chair.
The board also includes Øyvind Eriksen of Norway, Ásta Fjeldsted of Iceland, Antti Herlin of Finland, Lars Rebien Sørensen of Denmark, and Jacob Wallenberg of Sweden. Christian Frigast and Henrik Skovby will serve as Secretary-Generals.
Alongside its board structure, the alliance will establish a Nordic Advisory Board featuring eight prominent national representatives and the Secretary-General of the Nordic Council of Ministers, helping provide regional insight and strategic alignment.
Leading Nordic high-density colocation and built-to-suit data centre provider atNorth’s participation reflects the company’s continued commitment to supporting sustainable, sovereign and energy-efficient digital infrastructure across the Nordics.
“Across atNorth, we see firsthand the increasing convergence of digital infrastructure, energy systems and advanced compute across the Nordics. By working together through Nordic Compass, we can bolster the Nordic’s position in leading sustainable industrial development, helping to accelerate innovation and strengthen regional competitiveness”
During its first year, Nordic Compass partners will work with experts to identify scalable, industry-backed initiatives within each of its four strategic priority areas.
The alliance intends to build on existing Nordic initiatives whilst collaborating closely with industry associations, interest organisations, and wider stakeholders to ensure broad alignment and complementarity across the region.
More than 25 Nordic companies, foundations, and organisations have joined Nordic Compass in various capacities, including Aker ASA, Aker Solutions, Alfa Laval, atNorth, Carl Bennet AB, Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Danfoss, Embla Medical, EQT, Ericsson, EY, The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra, KONE, Kromann Reumert, McKinsey & Company, Nasdaq Nordic, Nokia, Nordea, Nordic Innovation, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Nscale, Saab, SEB, Vattenfall, Wallenberg Investments, and Ørsted.
Dalberg and the Enterprise Think Tank will oversee the alliance’s day-to-day operations as co-initiators.
Through coordinated Nordic action, the alliance ultimately aims to demonstrate how regional industrial cooperation can accelerate innovation, reinforce resilience, and strengthen Europe’s competitive position globally.
This article was produced by the editorial team at EME Outlook and published as part of the Outlook Publishing global network of B2B industry magazines.
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Lily Sawyer is an in-house writer for EME Outlook Magazine, where she is responsible for interviewing corporate executives and crafting original features for the magazine, corporate brochures, and the digital platform.
