When considering the significant industries in Norway, several obvious ones spring to mind: oil and gas, hydropower, property, and fishing. Life sciences would feature on very few lists, but that is slowly starting to change.

The life science industry itself in Norway has been growing rapidly in recent years, with a focus on innovative technologies and therapies in areas such as oncology and regenerative medicine. Jónas Einarsson and Radforsk Investeringsstiftelse have been at the forefront of this expansion.

Originally from Iceland, Einarsson moved to Norway as a child, completing his studies in 1982. A medical doctor by training, he spent ten years as a GP and Chief Medical Officer of Lærdal Municipality. After moving to Oslo in 2000, he had a chance meeting with an old friend running the Radium Hospital Research Foundation, which was founded as an independent foundation in 1986.

“He asked me just to help him for half a year because I didn’t quite know what I wanted to do. That was 23 years ago, and I’m still here!” Einarsson recalls with a smile.

 

Anders Tuv, Vice President and Chief Investment Officer, Radforsk, and Jónas Einarsson, CEO, Radforsk. Photo: Radforsk Investment Foundation

 

Risky business

The current iteration of Radforsk Investeringsstiftelse was established in 2001, with the goal of investing in promising startups and early-stage companies working in the life sciences industry in Norway. It is now one of the key players in the industry, with a strong track record of investing in promising life sciences companies and helping them to grow and succeed.

So I started to work with trying to set up new startup companies based on cancer research in Oslo and that was actually what intrigued and fascinated me, to see if that was possible to do in Norway.”

“I was very fascinated by getting to know all the scientists leading the cancer research,” Einarsson explains. “So I started to work with trying to set up new startup companies based on cancer research in Oslo and that was actually what intrigued and fascinated me, to see if that was possible to do in Norway.”

In fact, this was, according to Einarsson, one of the biggest early challenges for Radforsk.

We don’t have AstraZeneca. We don’t have Novo Nordisk. It took a lot of time to get Norwegian investors interested, because it’s not property, it’s not oil and gas, and it’s not fish. So then why should they go into such a risky business?”

“We don’t have AstraZeneca. We don’t have Novo Nordisk. It took a lot of time to get Norwegian investors interested, because it’s not property, it’s not oil and gas, and it’s not fish. So then why should they go into such a risky business? So that has been a very, very long road, but that has certainly changed. The interest in Norwegian life sciences doesn’t just come from inside Norway anymore,” he says.

Part of the ecosystem in Norway

Over the past decade, the life sciences industry in Norway has grown rapidly, with a number of new companies and research institutions emerging. Additionally, the venture capital market in Norway has also grown rapidly, with the number of firms and organizations actively investing in life sciences startups and early-stage companies increasing. This has helped to position Norway as one of the leading life sciences centers in the Nordic region. Radforsk has been at the forefront of this success, with notable investments such as Nodality, a personalized medicine company, and Algeta, a pharmaceutical company that Bayer acquired for 16.2 billion NOK. “They didn’t move Algeta out of Oslo. They doubled their employees in Norway,” explains Einarsson.

I don’t want to take all these very good people and the research groups out of this environment. I want to keep them here and try to get these companies as embedded as possible into the ecosystem.”

This idea is particularly important, as he believes that the community itself is strong, and that is what people are investing in. “That is really important for me, because I don’t want to take all these very good people and the research groups out of this environment. I want to keep them here and try to get these companies as embedded as possible into the ecosystem. I want them to be a part of the ecosystem in Norway if possible.”

 

Anders Tuv, President and Chief Investment Officer, Radforsk, and Jónas Einarsson, CEO, Radforsk. Photo: Radforsk Investment Foundation

 

Investments, collaborations and talent

In terms of the future of the life science industry in Norway, there are many positive signs, buoyed by a recent white paper by the Norwegian government on the healthcare industry, stating its objective, “To contribute to improved competitiveness in the Norwegian health industry, and at the same time contribute to a more sustainable health and care service, through more efficient prevention, treatment and care.” However, challenges still exist.

Norway offers a very good quality of life, but it is difficult to attract international scientists, entrepreneurs, and people working in big pharma. We need to get them to see that something is happening here up at the North Pole, so that they are willing to both invest and collaborate.”

“We are trying to develop new cancer medicines. It takes a very long time, it costs a lot of money, it takes a lot of investment,” explains Einarsson. “Talent is equally important. Norway offers a very good quality of life, but it is difficult to attract international scientists, entrepreneurs, and people working in big pharma. We need to get them to see that something is happening here up at the North Pole, so that they are willing to both invest and collaborate.”

 

Jónas Einarsson together with the former Prime Minister in Norway, Erna Solberg, at the opening of the Oslo Cancer Cluster Innovation Park in 2015. Photo: Gunnar Kopperud/Oslo Cancer Cluster

 

Bigger and better things

Radforsk has continuously played an active role in pushing collaboration and knowledge-sharing in the life sciences industry in Norway. An example of this collaborative spirit can be seen in the Oslo Cancer Cluster Innovation Park and Incubator, which opened in 2015 next to the Norwegian Radium Hospital and the Institute of Cancer Research.

When asked what successes he is most proud of, Einarsson explains why the Oslo Cancer Cluster is so important. “I started with that idea in 2006 and it became a reality in 2015. We have the cancer registry, we have some departments from the hospital and the incubator with a lot of our startup companies.”

The ecosystem is thriving and there are plans for further expansion still. For Jónas Einarsson, an idea that once seemed impossible is now well on its way to bigger and better things.