Avju Solutions at European Defence Week in Paris, and Rebuild Ukraine in Warsaw

In November we are going on two trips organised by Innovation Norway. From 2 to 4 November, Avju Solutions is at European Defence Week in Paris, and on 11 to 13 November we are at Rebuild Ukraine in Warsaw. The goal is the same in both places: To open new markets for the Observer and Gridvju, build our network and meet decision-makers in government and in the energy sector.

Why is Avju going to defence and reconstruction events?

Because energy security has become a security issue, and the power grid is part of it. When a country sets out to protect its society, knowing the condition of its grid matters as much as traditional defence equipment.

We notice this on every trip. The conversations we had at Eurosatory in Paris in June and in Washington in October pointed the same way: Governments and grid operators want to find weaknesses in their infrastructure before they turn into problems.

• «It is really only in the last few years that energy security has become a hot topic. Defence used to be mostly about bullets and gunpowder. Now we see countries and organisations paying more attention to prevention, to securing infrastructure before something happens instead of having to fix it afterwards.»
  • Magnus Haugen, CMO at Avju Solutions.

What happens at European Defence Week in Paris?

European Defence Week takes place at Bpifrance in Paris from 2 to 6 November 2026, and Innovation Norway and Bpifrance are behind the Norwegian programme. The week opens with the French-Norwegian Defence Industries Forum on 2 November, where one of the themes is surveillance and the High North. Three forum days on the future of defence, investment and growth in the defence industry follow. According to the organiser, more than 1,000 participants take part, among them over 350 start-ups and SMEs and 460 investors and corporations. 

Andreas Haugen, CEO, and Magnus Haugen, CMO, are travelling for Avju. Energy security is our main focus this time as well, and we have been given the chance to pitch to a larger audience. We will spend the rest of the week on the exhibition floor, in meetings and in conversations with people we would not meet at home.

• «The goal is the same as whenever we travel. We want to open the market by talking to the right people, and build a network that reaches people with decision-making authority, whether in government or in the energy market. That is what matters most to us on a trip like this.»
  • Andreas Haugen, CEO at Avju Solutions.

What is Rebuild Ukraine, and why is Avju taking part?

Rebuild Ukraine: Construction & Energy is an international exhibition and conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine, focusing on infrastructure, energy, industry and housing. This is its sixth edition, held at Expo XXI in Warsaw from 11 to 13 November 2026. Innovation Norway runs a Team Norway pavilion together with the Norwegian embassies in Kyiv and Warsaw and the Norwegian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce.

Karl Ylvisaker, System engineer, and Magnus Haugen, CMO, are travelling for Avju. This is our second time at the event. Since Rebuild Ukraine last year, we have been in contact with several large grid companies in Ukraine that are interested in our technology.

How can the Observer reach Ukraine?

Through external funding. Ukrainian grid companies operate in a war economy and are not able to buy the equipment themselves, so projects like this have to be financed by sponsors, donors or others outside the country. That is what we are working on now: finding the funding that allows us to deliver the equipment to Ukraine.

The attacks on energy infrastructure have made it even more important for Ukrainian grid operators to know the condition of their lines at all times. Observer units are mounted on the line itself and measure continuously, and the data is read in Gridvju. The hardware is proven in Arctic conditions and built to work where access is difficult.

• «The interest is there. But in a war economy the grid companies cannot buy the equipment themselves, so the funding has to come from outside. That is what we are spending our time on now.”
  • Magnus Haugen, CMO at Avju Solutions.

What happens after November?

When we are back, we will write about what came out of both trips, and how the work on funding deliveries to Ukraine moves forward. Our work in the U.S. following NATO DIANA’s U.S. Market Access program continues in parallel.

If you are at European Defence Week in Paris or Rebuild Ukraine in Warsaw and would like to meet us, write to hello@avju.com.