Today more than ever, climate change finds itself at the centre of public and political attention. To solve this urgent global issue, not only do governments take action by setting national sustainable goals but also innovative companies are creating solutions initiating change.
At Start Up Energy Transition, we are convinced that synergies are the key to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations. These arise from an international cooperation involving sharing knowledge and experience. That is why, SET works closely with start-ups, accelerator, incubators, investors and policy makers from all around the globe.
The Swedish Energy Innovation Ecosystem Report is the result of our cooperation with the World Energy Council and the Swedish Energy Agency. Its aim is to go through the Swedish energy transition background and its current strategy in order to inspire countries and entrepreneurs to contribute to building a more sustainable future.
The Swedish Energy Transition
Sweden is one of the most advanced countries in terms of green innovation and sustainability. Indeed, the country achieved its 2020 target in 2012 by having 50% renewable energy. It also plans on using 100% renewable power by 2040 and being net yero carbon by 2045.
These promising goals are driven by Swedish policies targeting efficiency, renewable energy, sustainability and climate neutrality. This includes preferring technology neutral processes and high carbon tax.
R&D: Key to the Swedish energy transition
To understand the origin of the Swedish energy transition, one has to go back to 1975. After the global oil crisis, Sweden no longer wanted to be an oil-dependant country. That is when they began funding a national energy research, development and demonstration programme.
Ever since Sweden has committed to invest in R&D. This led to Stockholm being referred to as Europe’s “Unicorn Factory”. In fact, there are currently more than 10,000 start-ups in the heart of the Swedish capital city.
Sweden x SET
Amongst the countries that are the most represented at the SET Award, Sweden ranks 3rd following Germany and France. Indeed, since 2017, 44 Swedish start-ups have applied to the SET Award among which 10 have featured in the SET100 list.
In 2019, Blixt, a Swedish start-up, earned the Award in Energy Efficiency, Smart Devices & Storage category. The company creates solid state miniature circuit breakers which enable numerous smart metering and smart grid solutions.
