Smart City Sweden South

Explore southern Sweden!

Discover smart & sustainable solutions in the southern region.

Photo: Werner Nystrand/Imagebank.sweden.se

About the region

In the south of Sweden, in the regions of Skåne and Blekinge, you will find approximately half of all Swedish export oriented cleantech companies. Smart City Sweden South is home to five universities, where Lund University, ranked as one of the world’s top 100 universities, is the most prominent. If that was not enough to make a visit to the south of Sweden, Skåne has some of Sweden’s top municipalities in regard to environmental matters.

Sustainable Urban Development is in the DNA of our region. It is our regional strength linked to energy, waste management and wastewater management, including stormwater management. When it comes to the field of energy, the region is especially outstanding within biogas.

Municipalities at the forefront of city development

Our municipalities have been sticking their necks out for a long time. The expansion of the Western Harbour in Malmö has become an international model for sustainable urban development. When the first area, Bo01, was built, it was Sweden’s first urban area with climate-neutral energy, and the region keeps building smart sustainable areas. One example is Brunnshög in Lund, an area next to the two international advanced research facilities MAX IV and European Spallation Source, which are currently under development. In the autumn of 2019, the world´s largest low-temperature district heating network was inaugurated. At the same time, a new, integrated wastewater and waste system has been developed in the new district H+ in Helsingborg. The facility includes a testbed and a showroom.

Home to innovative, international companies

What about companies? How about Orbital Systems, a highly innovative company that has developed a shower built on NASA technology. The shower saves up to 90 % of the heat and 80 % of the water. Another innovative company is Enjay, which recycles heat from moist and greasy environments such as restaurant kitchens. Alfa Laval is another company within the region, a global company that produces heat exchangers.

We can go on and on, but think that you will be better off exploring the best practice from our region presented below, and then get in contact with us so we can suggest a tailor-made visit programme set from your preferences.

Areas of expertise

WATER: wastewater treatment, biogas, stormwater management and blue green solutions
WASTE: combined heat and power, incineration, recycling, circular economy
ENERGY: district heating and cooling (both traditional and lowtemp), biogas, smart grids


Best practice in the region

The New District of Brunnshög – a Future to Believe in

The New District of Brunnshög – a Future to Believe in

Everyone’s talking about a smarter, more sustainable future. This is taking shape in Brunnshög in southern Sweden. And it’s being created around the people who will live there, focusing on their future needs.

The Intelligent District Heating System – Makes Use of AI

The Intelligent District Heating System – Makes Use of AI

In Karlshamn, a collaboration between several organisations has created a sustainable, intelligent district heating system. The system is controlled using the latest AI technology and is constantly evolving to create a future-proof sustainable energy supply.

Tvärpilen – a Small Residential Area, Big on Sustainability

Tvärpilen – a Small Residential Area, Big on Sustainability

The village of Kivik in south-east Sweden is where you’ll find the new residential area Tvärpilen, which combines beauty, sustainability and responsibility in perfect harmony.

Blue Green City Lab Evaluates Sustainable Solutions

Blue Green City Lab Evaluates Sustainable Solutions

At times of more extreme weather caused by climate change, the downside of dense cities with few green spaces and more paved surfaces is evident; extreme heat, flooding and reduced biodiversity. Blue Green City Lab is a test bed that evaluates new and proven ‘blue-green’ solutions to mitigate these effects.

Social and Environmental Investment in Vårsången: a Good Deal for Everyone

Social and Environmental Investment in Vårsången: a Good Deal for Everyone

The renovation of the rundown area of Vårsången in Malmö has generated many positive effects. People previously moved to Vårsången because of a lack of other options. Today, they move there because it’s an attractive district where residents want to live. This has increased property values significantly, proving that social and environmental investment is a good deal in the long run.

DigIT Hub Helps Businesses and Public Sector Achieve Digitalisation Goals

DigIT Hub Helps Businesses and Public Sector Achieve Digitalisation Goals

There is broad consensus that we cannot continue with business as usual if we are to achieve both a sustainable and prosperous future. DigIT Hub is an initiative that helps companies and the public sector digitalise in a unique, collaborative way.

Siptex – Groundbreaking Textile Sorting

Siptex – Groundbreaking Textile Sorting

Siptex is the world’s first large-scale facility of its kind. It sorts textiles by colour and fibre composition using near-infrared light, allowing it to handle large flows and produce textile fractions suited to different recycling processes.

Ohboy, the Bicycle House – Built for a Sustainable, Cost-Effective Lifestyle

Ohboy, the Bicycle House – Built for a Sustainable, Cost-Effective Lifestyle

Ohboy the Bicycle House in Malmö is designed, built and owned by architects Hauschild + Siegel. Owning the process from drawing board to finished product has allowed the architects control the entire concept and ensure it meets their vision of a smarter way to live.

Augustenborg Botanical Roof Garden

Augustenborg Botanical Roof Garden

With its 9500 sqm the Botanical Roof Garden of Augustenborg is an ever-evolving testbed of urban greening. Here you get to see more than 20 different solutions for greening a rooftop, from the most extensive green roofs to biosolar solutions and even a rooftop kitchen garden.

Evolution Road – the Next Generation Electric Roads

Evolution Road – the Next Generation Electric Roads

In the Evolution Road project, the next generation of ERS (Electric Road System) is being demonstrated and tested at a test site in Lund. ERS provides a charging infrastructure for all kinds of electric vehicles – with benefits such as longer driving range, seamless charging and reduced need for heavy batteries.

MAX IV Combines High-Tech Laboratory with High-Tech Sustainability

MAX IV Combines High-Tech Laboratory with High-Tech Sustainability

MAX IV is a world-leading accelerator physics laboratory for research into synchrotron radiation. It is also unique in its ambitious sustainability aims. Its smart solutions in energy efficiency, biological diversity and waste management make it the first building to receive the BREEAM-SE environmental classification.

Preschool Takes Holistic Approach to Sustainable and Circular Thinking

Preschool Takes Holistic Approach to Sustainable and Circular Thinking

Ronneby municipality is investing in Cradle to Cradle® as a method to achieve a circular economy, healthy materials, diversity and renewable energy. The method has been implemented in Hulta preschool, creating an environment of conscious material choices together with a stimulating outdoor environment and teaching.

Developing Cutting-Edge Fossil-Free District Heating at a Lower Temperature

Developing Cutting-Edge Fossil-Free District Heating at a Lower Temperature

The new district of Brunnshög in the city of Lund will be home to the world’s largest LTDH network (low-temperature district heating). The heating network is based almost entirely on fossil-free surplus heat recovered from MAX IV, another of Lund’s many innovative facilities.

H22 City Expo Showcases Big Ambitions for Building a Smarter City

H22 City Expo Showcases Big Ambitions for Building a Smarter City

Helsingborg’s international H22 City Expo in 2022, along with its preparatory work, is an ambitious investment that aims to lead the way to smarter, more sustainable urban life and planning. The goal is for Helsingborg to be one of Europe’s most innovative cities in 2022.

Verapark – a Lab for Innovative Ideas to Close the Circular Loop

Verapark – a Lab for Innovative Ideas to Close the Circular Loop

By unlocking traditional business models within waste management, Verapark is an innovation platform in which the business sector, the public sector and universities collaborate to develop new ideas for recycling and upcycling waste.

Drottninghög – Creating an Attractive and Sustainable Neighbourhood

Drottninghög – Creating an Attractive and Sustainable Neighbourhood

In the Drottninghög neighbourhood of Helsingborg in southern Sweden a transformation is underway, from a run-down district to an attractive, sustainable part of the city. This change is based on close dialogue between residents, real-estate companies and the City of Helsingborg.

BioDiverCity – Green Areas to Boost Sustainability

BioDiverCity – Green Areas to Boost Sustainability

The BiodiverCity project in Malmö demonstrates the benefits of green roofs and other green areas in urban environments. Not only do they promote wellbeing, but they also help increase biodiversity and other important ecosystem services.

Remediation Project Turns Polluted Sites into Toxin-Free Environment

Remediation Project Turns Polluted Sites into Toxin-Free Environment

In Kristianstad, one of the most polluted areas in southern Sweden has been decontaminated as part of a project to achieve a toxin-free environment. Toxins were reduced by 99.9% and the area is now the development site for a new residential district.

RecoLab – Pilot Recovery Plant for Sustainable Management of Waste Water and Food Waste

RecoLab – Pilot Recovery Plant for Sustainable Management of Waste Water and Food Waste

The new city district of Oceanhamnen in Helsingborg has created a solution for separating and recovering different kinds of waste water and food waste at source. This leads to sustainable reuse of resources through Sweden’s first recovery plant, Reco Lab.

Linero – Urban Renovation for a sustainable future

Linero – Urban Renovation for a sustainable future

Linero, a district of Lund in southern Sweden, is a successful smart city upgrade project focused on improving around 800 apartments built in the 1970s to create more energy-efficient, eco-friendly housing.

Augustenborg -Turning a Troubled District into an Attractive, Resilient Eco-City

Augustenborg -Turning a Troubled District into an Attractive, Resilient Eco-City

The Augustenborg district in Malmö was ambitiously rebuilt to manage flooding problems and socioeconomic challenges. As a result of solutions based on ecosystem services, the area is now an attractive neighbourhood and an example of a successful sustainable makeover of an urban district.

From Table to Soil – a Holistic Approach to Waste Management

From Table to Soil – a Holistic Approach to Waste Management

The municipality-owned waste plant NSR works with developing all stages of waste management for six municipalities in southern Sweden. NSR refers to its holistic approach to waste management as ‘from table to soil’, which incorporates various aspects of recycling, from smart kerbside waste collection to turning food waste into fuel and biofertilizer.

Lomma Harbour – an industrial harbour transformed into an attractive residential area

Lomma Harbour – an industrial harbour transformed into an attractive residential area

Over the past 15-20 years, Lomma Hamn has been transformed from an industrial harbor into an attractive, appreciated, and accessible residential area. Lomma municipality has not only taken care of an environmental debt and created a well-known brand but also experienced a 30 percent increase in population compared to before the redevelopment.

Filborna Combined Heat- and Power Plant

Filborna Combined Heat- and Power Plant

The Filborna plant is a waste-to-energy plant which combusts sorted waste from the nearby region. It supplies approximately 40 percent of Helsingborg’s heating demand. The plant features a state-of-the art, combined flue gas cleaning and condensation system to ensure high efficiency whilst meeting stringent emission requirements.

The Environmentally Sustainable City of Tomorrow in Malmö’s Western Harbour

The Environmentally Sustainable City of Tomorrow in Malmö’s Western Harbour

Malmö’s Western Harbour, previously a run-down shipyard and industrial area covering 187 hectares, is now a vibrant ‘city within a city’, with a university, around 10,000 residents and more than 16,000 people working there (figure from 2016). The area has its own systems for managing its energy supply and waste treatment, and car traffic in the area has been minimised as an environmentally sustainable approach to urban planning and mobility.

Karpalund Biogas Plant, Kristianstad

Karpalund Biogas Plant, Kristianstad

The digestion facility for the production of biogas is one of the bigger in Sweden, treating about 85,000 tons of organic material every year.

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