Vice-president of the European Commission made a one day visit in Umeå

Vice-President and Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič did a one-day visit in Umeå Friday March 31. Region Västerbotten and the city of Umeå hosted the visit, which focused on smart energy solutions and Northern Sweden's potential of development.

The Commissioner is responsible for Europe's Smart cities, and Umeå is from this year a so-called Smart City Lighthouse along with Rotterdam and Glasgow, in the project RUGGEDISED. Within the framework of this international partnership several of Umeå 's innovative and high-tech solutions in the campus in co-operation with organisations and industry will be tested in the next few years.

The program

The visit in Umeå was made by request from the Commissioner, and began with a seminar at Umeå University. Sara Emanuelsson, Energiföretagen, moderated the seminar where the majority of the participants were students. Participating was also Skellefteå Kraft and during lunch CEO Hans Kreisel presented the Node Pole initiative.

During the afternoon, the public transport company Ultra and Hybricon Umeå presented ultrafast charged electric buses during a trip to Ålidhem. Sustainable Ålidhem was presented closer, as well as innovations in the context of the Smart City Lighthouse.

The visit ended at Umeå Arts Campus. Where Sliperiet’s artistic director Linnea Therese Dimitriou presented the +Project, which brings together academic partners and companies in digital manufacturing, construction and 3D technology in northern Sweden.

- We are happy that the Vice-President chose to visit Umeå to take part of some of all our sustainable innovations. He has with great interest noted that Umeå is on the cutting edge with many exciting solutions for a climate smart city.

Umeå – A Living Lab

- Europe is in the midst of a new industrial revolution towards a low-carbon future. In its transport and energy system, in its spatial planning and its educational system. It’s a real “Living Lab”, in which citizens are fully engaged. No smart city without smart citizens, says Maroš Šefčovič.

During the visit, Umeå particularly highlighted the importance of the following:

• Green Umeå - one of Europe’s fastest growing cities and together with other medium-sized cities a key to developing the Energy Union.

• Working actively to contribute to the Energy Union and sharing its achievements with peer cities across Europe.

3 achievements to share within the Energy Union

• 100 % engagement with all school children involved in a School for sustainable development building environmental awareness for the future
  

• 100 % renewable electricity and climate-neutral energy system from 2018
  

• 100 % fossil fuel free public transport from 2020 with Ultrafast-charging all-electric buses
  

3 challenges to share within the Energy Union

• Including a consumption perspective on energy use and climate impact from the city
  

• Strengthening sharing solutions for the common good as in Umeå’s RUGGEDISED Smart cities Lighthouse project
  

• Justice and climate change – from affordable sustainable solutions to equal access to sustainable mobility between men and women.

The importance of regional and local participation
Regional and local level are important when creating a safe and climate-neutral energy in Europe and knowledge of the local and regional conditions must be taken into account. Efforts to develop energy systems in EU must also be relevant to the well-developed, remote and sparsely populated areas of northern Sweden, where the public sector and financial investors are small.

Program and folder for further information from the visit is attached.

More information:

Hans Lindberg (s)
Mayor
City of Umeå
+46 70 589 01 66
hans.lindberg@umea.se

Katarina Areskoug Mascarenhas
Head of Representation in Sweden
European Commission
+46 70 877 72 40
katarina.areskoug@ec.europa.eu

Elisabeth Lind
Head of Communication
Green Umeå and Ruggedised Smart City Lighthouse
Telefon: +46 70 242 81 42
elisabeth.lind@umea.se
www.umea.se