Strategic Partners

The Confederation of Danish Industry (DI) is the organization for 57 industrial and employers' associations, representing Danish manufacturing and services industries. DI and its 5.800 member companies represent approximately 320,000 employees from a broad cross section of Denmark's industry and services sectors. From long established companies with thousands of employees to small newly started ventures.

DI actively promotes the interests of business in a variety of industry related policy areas. In order to strengthen member companies' positions on the emerging markets in the Eastern part of the Baltic Sea Region it is important to DI to support the political, economical and cultural process of development which integrates the Baltic countries in the European Union.

DI is a member of the Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe,UNICE, the voice of European business and industry vis-à-vis EU institutions.Further, as a representative of Danish industry, DI is a member of the International Chamber of Commerce, ICC, and of the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD, BIAC. DI is appointed Danish member of the Council of Baltic Sea States' Business Advisory Council, BAC. 

The Danish Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs seeks to improve the conditions for growth in Denmark. The Ministry conducts thorough economic analyses and suggests policy initiatives in areas imperative to economic growth.

The main mission of the ministry is to create future-oriented conditions for growth for citizens and companies in an increasingly globalised world and the vision is to achieve the best conditions for growth in Europe in order to make Denmark an attractive place to live, work and run a company.

The Baltic Sea Region defined as the Nordic countries, the Baltic States, Poland, Germany and Northwest Russia is considered an area of special interest for Denmark. Denmark is actively engaged in the pursuit of economic integration and business development in the region both bilaterally and within the various regional frameworks for economic cooperation.

The Mission of the European Investment Bank is to further the objectives of the European Union by making long-term finance available for sound investment.

The EIB funds its operations by borrowing on the capital markets and not by drawing on the EU budget. The Bank enjoys decision-making independence within the EU’s institutional system which allows it to take lending decisions solely on the basis of a project’s merits, and tailor borrowing in line with the best opportunities available on the financial markets.

The EIB has provided financing of 242 bn Euros in the years 2004-2008. In 2008 alone, the Bank approved project financing to a value of 59 bn Euros. This finance has supported projects ranging from research, development and innovation to roads, bridges, urban light railways, large and small-scale industries, waste treatment, water supplies, renewable energy schemes, housing and hospitals.

Fortum is a leading energy company focusing on the Nordic countries, Russia and the Baltic Rim area.
Activities cover the generation, distribution and sale of electricity and heat and the operation and maintenance
of power plants. Our vision is to be the benchmark power and heat company excelling in sustainability.

Fortum is present in more than 10 countries. The focus is in the Nordic countries, the Baltic States,
Poland and Russia.

In 2009, Fortum's sales totalled EUR 5.4 billion and operating profit was EUR 1.8 billion.
The company employs approximately 11,500 people. Fortum’s shares are quoted on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki.

The Government of the Republic of Lithuania is headed by Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius; it is the fifteenth government since the re-establishment of Lithuania’s independence on 11 March 1991. The current Government aims to be efficient and vigorous, and applies the principles of modern management, flexibility and results orientation, so that the State would serve its people’s needs. The Government performance is based on democracy, openness and legitimacy, while pursuing its main goal to bring people together and take responsibility in creating a better future for the country.

The Swedish Government is assisted by the Government Offices (Regeringskansliet) – a single, integrated authority comprising the Prime Minister’s Office, the government ministries and the Office for Administrative Affairs. The Government Offices of Sweden (through the Ministry for Foreign Affairs) has been a Strategic Partner of Baltic Development Forum since 1998.

Strengthening the cooperation in the Baltic Sea region is an important objective of Swedish foreign policy. The current focus is on implementation of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region and also on more results-oriented cooperation in the framework of existing collaboration formats such as the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) and the Northern Dimension.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland (MFA) looks after Finland's interests in the international community. This includes supporting democracy, good governance, human rights, equality, the rule of law, an effective market economy and sustainable development in order to create a fair world.

The welfare of the Baltic Sea Region is one of the key priorities of Finland. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland endorses cooperation in the area through various instruments. The Northern Dimension policy, the Northern Regional Councils and other forms of cooperation build bridges across the Baltic Sea. The Baltic Development Forum plays an important role as a platform which brings together the Heads of State and Government and prominent representatives of business life together in Baltic Sea Summits.

In the MFA, regional and cross border policies in the northern part of Europe are mostly dealt with in the Unit for Regional Cooperation at the Eastern Department. The unit is responsible inter alia for issues related to the Northern Dimension policy, cooperation between the Baltic Sea countries and Arctic & Barents regions. The main objective of Finland's cooperation with its neighbouring areas is to support economic and social development in the area and to promote the preconditions of cooperation between the public authorities, business life and citizens. More information about Finland's cooperation with neighbouring areas can be obtained from the web page of Unit for Regional Cooperation.

Gasunie is a European gas infrastructure company. Our network ranks among the largest high pressure gas pipeline grids in Europe, consisting of over 15,000 kilometres of pipeline in the Netherlands and northern Germany, dozens of installations and approximately 1,300 gas receiving stations. The annual gas throughput totals approximately 125 billion cubic metres. We serve the public interest in the markets in which we are active and work to create value for our stakeholders.

Gasunie is the first independent gas transport provider with a cross-border network in Europe and offers transport services via its subsidiaries Gas Transport Services B.V. (GTS) in the Netherlands and Gasunie Deutschland in Germany. We also offer other services in the gas infrastructure field, including gas storage and LNG. We consider the wishes of our customers to be of prime importance. We aim for the highest standards in safety, reliability, efficiency and sustainability. Due to the reliability and strategic location of our network in relation to expanding international gas flows, the Gasunie network forms the core of what is called the northwest European 'gas roundabout'.

The Nordic Council of Ministers, formed in 1971, is the forum for Nordic governmental co-operation. The work is co-ordinated by the Nordic ministers of co-operation.Despite its name the Council of Ministers consists of several individual councils of ministers. Most of the Nordic ministers for specific policy areas meet in the council of ministers a couple of times a year. The ministers for foreign affairs and defence are exceptions, as they hold meetings outside the formal framework of the Nordic Council of Ministers.

SAS is the Nordic region’s largest listed airline and travel group. Besides Scandinavian Airlines, which is the core of SAS, the group also operates regional traffic within its Norwegian unit Wideroe and its Finnish unit Blue 1. SAS Group’s airlines has an extensive network in the Baltic Sea region and the rest of Europe as well as routes to and from North America and Asia.  Scandinavian Airlines is a founding member of the world’s biggest airline alliance - Star Alliance™. The Group also has companies supporting airline operations, SAS Technical Services and SAS Ground Services.

VINNOVA (The Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems) is a State authority that aims to promote growth and prosperity throughout Sweden. Our particular area of responsibility comprises innovations linked to research and development. Our tasks are to fund the needs-driven research required by a competitive business and industrial sector and a flourishing society, and to strengthen the networks that are such a necessary part of this work.

The Government has assigned VINNOVA to:

• make Sweden a leading research nation in which research of high scientific quality is conducted.
• promote sustainable growth and increased employment by acting to increase competitiveness and the emergence and expansion of successful companies.
• support research and development work of the highest quality in areas such as engineering, transport, communications and working life in order to promote renewal and sustainable growth.
• stimulate Swedish participation in European and international R&D collaboration and in the exchange of experience in the field of innovation.

VINNOVA makes a clear contribution to Sweden’s development as a leading growth country.