Cooperation with other organisations
The Norwegian Competition Authority works with several other government agencies, as well as cooperating with multiple international organisations and participating in a number of international fora.
In Norway
The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate, the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (formerly the Norwegian Credit Supervisory Authority) and the Norwegian Competition Authority work together to supervise the power market. The Norwegian Competition Authority actually has bilateral cooperation agreements with the Norwegian Communications Authority (NKOM – formerly the Norwegian Post and Telecommunications Authority) the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway (formerly the Norwegian Credit Supervisory Authority) and the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate.
In addition, the Norwegian Competition Authority has partnership agreements with the Norwegian Consumer Authority and the Norwegian Consumer Council. These three organisations have also established a shared cooperation forum to ensure that their mutual working relationship flows even more smoothly. To find out more about the partnership, read the 2004 report: Working relationship between the Norwegian Consumer Council, the Norwegian Consumer Authority and the Norwegian Competition Authority.
Nordic Cooperation
The Norwegian Competition Authority cooperates with the competition authorities in the other Nordic countries. The competition authorities hold annual meetings where they exchange experience and discuss matters of common interest. The authorities also work together in areas such as the exchange of information.
In 2001, Denmark, Iceland and Norway entered into an agreement that provides a better basis for the competition authorities to work together on specific cases. Sweden joined this arrangement in 2003.
The parties signed a new Nordic agreement in Helsinki on 8 September 2017. Under the terms of the new agreement, the authorities have the power to gather information and secure evidence on their own territory on behalf of each other. The new agreement also expands the geographic area covered by the Nordic cooperation arrangement, in that the Faeroe Islands, Finland and Greenland have now become parties to the agreement, in addition to Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Stronger and more extensive Nordic cooperation on competition policies will inevitably lead to more efficient enforcement of Competition Law.
Read the agreement Nordic cooperation (ratified by Norway in 2019) >> (pdf in Norwegian)
International cooperation
The Norwegian Competition Authority (NCA) represents Norway in the Advisory Committee for competition and the Advisory Committee for merger cases, which the European Commission and the Efta Surveillance Authority (ESA) must consult before taking any decisions in concrete cases. The NCA also participates in the European Competition Network (ECN), in which the European Commission and the national competition authorities in all EU Member States cooperate to ensure effective and consistent application of the EU competition rules. As the network also is instrumental for the Commission in policy development in the field of competition, the NCA is entrusted with reporting on new and ongoing policy developments to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries. The NCA has competence to enforce Article 53 and 54 of the EEA agreement’s competition rules. In that regard, the NCA can also assist in inspections conducted by the European Commission or the Efta Surveillance Authority to secure evidence in relation to a suspicion of infringement of Article 53 or Article 54 of the EEA Agreement.
The Norwegian Competition Authority represents Norway in is a member of the OECD Competition Committee and the two working groups under this committee. At the committee meetings, the member countries discuss issues related to competition policy and enforcement, as well as sharing information and experience. All member countries prepare an annual report.
Show overview of the Norwegian Competition Authority’s contribution to OECD meetings >>
Other international assignments
• The Director of the Norwegian Competition Authority is a member of a network for competition authority directors in the EEA, known as the European Competition Authorities (ECA).
• The International Competition Network (ICN) was established on the initiative of the United States and the EU. The Norwegian Competition Authority is a member of this network, whose purpose is to raise the level of international cooperation and to contribute to harmonising rules and regulations.