Will a marketplace for trading electricity, heating and cooling accelerate the transition to fossil-free fuels? That is what Fossil-Free Energy Districts is determined to find out!
The tension is palpable at the start of the EU project Fossil-Free Energy Districts (FED) at Johanneberg Science Park on the grounds of Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg. Reports from the project are filled with excitement and anticipation for what the project may bring about.
Business Region Göteborg is one of the partners in the project and aims to both support the innovative aspects of the business model and to highlight the fact that Gothenburg is at the forefront when it comes to green solutions.
Lars Bern, Area Manager Innovation, and Bernt Svensén, Manager for Green Gothenburg at Business Region Göteborg, are two individuals who are following the project with keen interest.
“What the project will try to find out is if any economic mechanisms exist which will actually make us use less fossil fuel,” says Bernt Svensén, Manager for Green Gothenburg at Business Region Göteborg.
“The innovation lies in creating a business model and a marketplace for electricity, heating, and cooling,” adds Lars Bern, Area Manager Innovation, Business Region Göteborg. “That´s what makes FED unique, and that the trading is being tested on a scale as large as that of the Chalmers area.”
Read more about the start-up of the projects.
First steps taken towards a Fossil – Free Energy District >>
Follow the project at uia-initiative.eu or www.johannebergsciencepark.com (Swedish)
The Fossil-free Energy Districts project, FED
The Fossil-free Energy Districts project, FED, is an innovative effort by the City of Gothenburg, Sweden, to decrease the use of energy and the dependence on fossil fuel in a built environment. A unique local market for electricity, district heating and cooling is being developed together with eight strong partners. Johanneberg Science Park, Göteborg Energi, Business Region Göteborg, Ericsson, RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Akademiska Hus, Chalmersfastigheter and Chalmers University of Technology are all contributing with their expertise and knowledge to make FED attractive for other European cities as well. During 2017−2019 the FED testbed will be situated on Campus Johanneberg. FED is financed by Urban Innovative Actions, an initiative of the European Commission for cities to test new solutions for urban challenges.
