KOTA KINABALU: Norway is keen to work with Sabah on renewable energy production, says the country’s ambassador to Malaysia Morten Paulsen.

       He told Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor that Norway was prepared to explore the development of renewable energy as part of the state’s green initiatives.

       Hajiji said Sabah was keen to tap into Norwegians’ expertise in terms of developing green energy in the state.

       “We welcome the interest shown by Norway in Sabah’s renewable energy production sector.

       “Norway is well known for its capability in renewable energy production using state-of-the- art technology,” he said after meeting Paulsen at Menara Kinabalu here yesterday.

       Paulsen was attending the Sabah International Business and Economic Summit (SIBES) on Monday and Tuesday.

       The participants included foreign ambassadors, and local and foreign investors.

       Participants from 21 countries including South Korea, New Zealand, Sweden, Indonesia, Russia, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland attended the summit themed “Unlocking Sabah’s Potential, Unleashing Business Opportu-nities.”

       Earlier, Italy’s ambassador to Malaysia Massimo Rustico said he would promote Sabah to potential entrepreneurs and investors from Italy.

       He added Sabah had a lot of investment potential for Italian businesses.

       “I am excited about the involvement of the state government in attracting foreign investments here. We will invite investors from Italy to invest here,” Rustico said after paying a courtesy call to Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin.