Faroe Business Report — The International Review of Faroe Islands Industry and Trade - Faroe Business Report — The International Review of Faroe Islands Industry and Trade

More than an architectural gem and a must see for any visitor to Faroe, the Nordic House is becoming increasingly popular as a conference center, with pretty good reason—and with a stylish extension underway.

Things have never been quite the same in Tórshavn since the Nordic House in the Faroe Islands opened almost 25 years ago. Conceived as a cultural house, designed by architects Ola Steen from Norway and Kollbrún Ragnarsdóttir from Iceland, the quietly stunning building so perfectly blending into its environment has proved highly versatile. Used for many kinds of concerts, exhibitions, special events and — to an increasing extent — international meetings and conferences, the house is now set for an extension that will considerably expand its conference capacity.

“We were fortunate that architect Steen is still active in the business,” says Niels Halm, managing director of the Nordic House in the Faroe Islands. Mr Halm explains that the architect was contacted and was willing and able to take on the project. Effectively, he will dust off a part of his original design of the house that was ditched back in the early 1980s.

“The result will be both independent and integrated in relation to the main building. It’s a separate house and it will be placed behind the main building but the two will be connected via an underground passage.”

With construction work scheduled to begin during the second half of 2007, the two-story, 15 million dkk (2m eur / 1.4m gbp) Nordic House extension will include a medium-sized auditorium with arena-style seating for a maximum audience of 170, plus five separate rooms for meetings, seminars or other events.


‘Extra experience’: While the conference facilities already offered by the house may well suffice for hosting a number of high quality events and large gatherings in every season, the additional capacity will allow for a more focused effort in the field of business conferences, seminars, meetings and similar activities. And it will come handy as demand for business related events continues to soar.

“It’s kind of a balancing act,” says Nordic House project manager Urd Johannesen. “This is a cultural house and we do prioritize cultural events, especially in the evenings and at week-ends; but conferences and meetings also form part of the core activities. As a matter of fact, we have to turn down some requests for holding events here… I think people have become more aware of the advantages the Nordic House has to offer and how well suited it is.”

In spite of a prevalent viewpoint that distinguishes very clearly between cultural events and business events, a more integrated approach is often seen in the Nordic House, highlighting the fact that there is no business life without culture, and no cultural life without business.

Says Ms Johannesen: “Business and culture don’t necessarily have to be separate — sometimes it’s quite the opposite. This house encompasses both, and it’s apparently becoming more in demand to mix cultural elements into business events, and I think that’s really where the Nordic House stands out. Business and culture complement each other and a combination is often profitable for both.”

When the extension has been completed, events held may for instance include sessions of the Nordic Council of Ministers, says Mr Halm.

“This is already the best conference center in the Faroes and I’d say we’re well-geared for events of many sizes but things like Nordic Council sessions would be a bit too much of a stretch at present — however that might be different when the extension is built.”

The Nordic House in the Faroe Islands functions as a cultural organization under the Nordic Council of Ministers, funded mainly through the Council, with an annual contribution from the Faroese government. The current extension project is sponsored by the Nordic Council, the Faroese government, the municipality of Tórshavn and the A.P. Møller and Wife Chastine McKinney Møller General Purpose Fund.

“We’ll be looking to market our new facilities with a focus on conferences that are likely to be held overseas — those who want to add some extra experience to their events.”

The target has been set to eight additional conferences a year, and the Nordic House will be cooperating with local hotels to offer accommodation and related services.

“Four events before the summer season and four events shortly after the season, each approximately 150 persons, will be well in line with the capacity of this town,” Mr Halm says.

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