Göteborg Energi – a forerunner for sustainable energy solutions
Göteborg Energi has been the municipal energy company of the citizens of Gothenburg since the end of the 19th century. The company contributes to a sustainable Gothenburg, which means ensuring that customers receive smart, efficient and sustainable solutions for energy and urban fiber and working to develop a sustainable society for future generations.
Göteborg Energi aims to lead the work towards sustainable energy solutions. Through collaboration, innovation and a future-oriented approach, they want to contribute to playing a decisive role in shaping a greener future for Sweden’s energy landscape.
Active and inclusive sustainability work
Eric Zinn describes himself as a “technical environmental and sustainability person” with a background as a civil engineer from Chalmers University of Technology.
He has been at Göteborg Energi since 2007, initially in biogas but seven years ago as sustainability manager.
Eric believes that the main task in his role is to engage and create dialogue with various stakeholders in order to understand challenges and opportunities with the changes that need to take place in the transition towards a more sustainable future.
Finding workable solutions that are optimal over time is not easy, but it is a challenge that Eric is happy to take on.
Hydrogen – one of several important pieces of the puzzle in the transition to achieve zero emissions
Transitioning from fossil fuels to hydrogen and other fossil-free alternatives presents challenges, especially when it comes to existing infrastructure and regulations. Eric sees a need for far-reaching system changes and emphasizes the importance of changing decision-making processes and behaviors in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Although the production of renewable energy has improved in recent years, it does not solve all of our sustainability challenges. At Göteborg Energi, alternatives to traditional biofuels have been used for a long time by using waste heat from industries and waste incineration for the district heating system. They are also keen to test different new approaches so that even when the projects do not produce the desired results, they are used as valuable lessons for future projects rather than pure failures.
Eric sees that green hydrogen can become an important integrated piece of the puzzle in the energy system to provide a sustainable energy supply. By producing and using hydrogen, the variations of renewable power can be better managed.
As the development is today, he primarily sees the green hydrogen as doing the most good in reducing dependence on fossil fuels and reducing carbon dioxide emissions in industrial processes. However, in the future when infrastructure and maturity have increased, he sees potential in using hydrogen storage of excess electricity from renewable energy sources, to make it possible to balance and stabilize the energy supply more effectively. But here, of course, hydrogen competes with other alternatives as well.
Why are you a member of Vätgas Sweden
Through Göteborg Energi Nät, we have been members of Vätgas Sweden for as long as I can remember, and we see great potential for hydrogen in Sweden, especially with our abundance of renewable resources such as water, wind and sometimes even solar energy.
Vätgas Sweden’s platform with its members is an important voice for driving relevant issues and common challenges, such as creating consensus among members on important issues, such as the integration of hydrogen into existing infrastructure within, for example, district heating. Additionally, he sees the value of investing in shared industry knowledge and fostering collaboration to identify and overcome potential conflicts.
Image source: Gothenburg Energy
