Latvia and Canada have a great potential for increasing cooperation in building industry

It was the conclusion at the end of the first ever Latvia – Canada Building Industry Forum. On 5^th December Ambassador Kaspars Ozoliņš officially opened the Forum, “Exploring Innovations and Partnership Opportunities for Sustainable and Efficient Residential and Industries Development”, organized by the Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA) representative Office in Canada and the Embassy of Latvia in Canada. Major building companies from Latvia and Ontario government officials participated at the event.

The Forum took place during “The Buildings Show”, the largest building show in North America where Latvia participated with a trade mission and a national booth. Representatives from major building companies from Latvia - Adventum Tech, AM Energy, KUPRAVA INDUSTRY, Riga Wood/LATVIJAS FINIERIS, STIKLA SERVISS, TENAX PANEL, Volko Engineering, WINDOWS FACTORY un WWL HUS - were present.

In his opening remarks Ambassador Kaspars Ozoliņš emphasized the established business relations of many Latvian building companies abroad, in particular in the Scandinavian markets, well known for their high standards. Ambassador also mentioned that Latvia’s economy was export-oriented with exports exceeding 60 % of the GDP. He also encouraged businesses to take advantage of the excellent image Canada has in Latvia due to its military presence in leading the NATO multinational battle group.

Adrian Bradford, Senior Sector Adviser at the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and trade, and Vincent Chamberland, representative of the Ministry of Natural Resources, highlighted the advantages of economic cooperation with Ontario, the most significant province in Canada in terms of the GDP, including in the forestry sector.

Ilze Lācgalve, Head of Latvian Investment and Development Agency (LIAA) representative Office in Canada, discussed advantages offered by the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), as well as innovations in the building industry in Latvia. She stressed that Latvia was among the leaders in the EU in modular construction, Latvian companies offered advanced insulation materials, they focused on energy efficiency and ensured alignment with EU standards.

Māris Būmanis, executive board member of Riga Wood/Latvijas Finieris briefed about the forest industry in Latvia and encouraged Canadian businesses to invest in it, including in the pulp sector. James Borst, Sector Manger, Ontario Centre of Innovation, and Founder & CEO at 3D City Scapes, gave an overview on the building innovations in Ontario, highlighting the artificial intelligence, drones, robotics, digital twinning and safety technology at work places.

The Forum concluded with a social hour aimed at facilitating networking and contacts among companies and entrepreneurs.