Canada and Norway have taken a step toward integrating their space and defence architectures, signing a new Letter of Intent (LOI) to deepen bilateral cooperation in the space domain.
The agreement arrives as the two Arctic nations simultaneously move to modernize an 18-year-old free trade pact, signaling a comprehensive alignment of their economic, industrial, and national security interests.
The dual-track diplomatic effort underscores a growing recognition in Ottawa and Oslo that protecting the High North requires both sovereign space capabilities and resilient, allied supply chains. This strategy was heavily emphasized on March 14 during Prime Minister Mark Carney’s high-profile visit to Norway for the Canada-Nordic Summit, where he stressed that “security can no longer be taken for granted” in a divided world.
The space defence agreement, signed in Oslo by Canadian Minister of National Defence David J. McGuinty and Norwegian Minister of Defence Tore O. Sandvik, establishes a formal framework to strengthen cooperation across policy, intelligence, research and development, and industry capabilities.
For the Canadian space sector, the LOI represents another strategic opportunity. The Department of National Defence noted that the agreement places a particular focus on advancing Arctic security. As climate change increases maritime traffic and adversarial activity in the region, both nations are highly dependent on space-based assets—specifically satellite communications, Earth observation, and navigation—to maintain domain awareness and sovereignty.
The bilateral pact builds upon existing multilateral collaboration through the Combined Space Operations (CSpO) Initiative. It also aligns directly with Canada’s recently updated Defence Industrial Strategy, which identifies the space sector as a critical sovereign capability. With Canada actively investing in a sovereign space launch capability, closer ties with Norway—which operates established launch infrastructure at Andøya Space—could provide valuable industrial synergies.
This space pact is part of a much larger, continent-spanning defence integration. While in Norway, Prime Minister Carney observed Exercise Cold Response, a massive 14-nation NATO Arctic military drill, alongside Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Concrete examples of this growing defence and aerospace industrial collaboration are already materializing. Recently, Canadian space launch startup NordSpace signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Kongsberg Geospatial—a Canadian subsidiary of Norwegian defence giant Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace—to develop a digital mission control centre for its Atlantic Spaceport Complex. Similarly, Toronto-based Kepler Communications recently selected Kongsberg NanoAvionics as its preferred European satellite bus provider to expand its optical data relay network. To fuel further integration of these allied space and defence supply chains, Canada is leaning on its newly established Defence Investment Agency and the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank to mobilize financing.
Simultaneously, the economic wrapper for this defence alignment is being overhauled. Days prior to the Oslo summit, Canadian Trade Minister Tim Hodgson met with Norway’s Minister of Trade and Industry Cecilie Myrseth at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada) PDAC mineral convention in Toronto to discuss trade and the modernization of the 2008 free trade agreement between Canada and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
The original 2008 agreement was largely focused on physical commodities. The modernized framework aims to expand into services, business establishment, and public procurement—areas critical to the space and technology sectors.
“Norwegian companies contribute to jobs and innovation in Canada. The collaboration is particularly strong in raw materials, aquaculture, energy, and the maritime sector,” said Minister Myrseth following the meetings. “Canada’s research institutions and startup environments also create opportunities for Norwegian companies in space, defence, and health, among other things.”
For aerospace executives, this modernization is could be consequential. Expanding the trade agreement to explicitly cover services and public procurement will lower the barriers for Canadian and Norwegian space firms to bid on each other’s government defence and space contracts.
Furthermore, discussions at PDAC highlighted a shared priority to secure the critical mineral supply chains—such as rare-earth elements—essential for advanced space systems and defence hardware. The private sector is already moving on this front; Canadian company Champion Iron recently announced a $400 million proposed acquisition of Norwegian high-grade iron ore producer Rana Gruber ASA.
By linking space defence cooperation with an updated, tech-forward trade framework and massive capital investments, Canada and Norway are “friend-shoring” their high-tech and defence industrial bases.