American delegation visited Adven in Nynäshamn

New York has taken a leading role in the energy and climate transition, with strict climate requirements for buildings and historic investments in new energy infrastructure. With new district heating systems, known as Thermal Energy Networks, the ambition is to replace today’s energy solutions, which are largely dependent on fossil gas.

Against this background, Sweden is attracting strong interest. According to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Naturvårdsverket, the phase-out of fossil fuels in the heating sector represents the single largest contribution to the reduction of Sweden’s greenhouse gas emissions.

“With a clear system perspective and a focus on shared benefits, Sweden can be proud of our district heating networks. It is the combination of long-term thinking, smart use of local resources, and a strong focus on the customer offering that makes the Swedish market particularly strong,” says Sofie Fjellgren, Senior Business Developer International markets at the Swedish Energy Agency.

Part of a long-term collaboration

The visit to Sweden was part of a long-term collaboration between the Swedish Energy Agency and New York State and City, focusing on buildings and district heating. The delegation included representatives from politics, academia, the local energy authority, as well as energy, real estate, and consulting companies from New York State and City.

Over three days, the group visited three different energy companies in the Stockholm region, with Adven in Nynäshamn as the final stop.

Flexible and energy-efficient district heating

The visit began at Nynäshamn’s municipal building, where the municipality and Adven presented their operations. The delegation then visited Adven’s combined heat and power (CHP) plant for a guided tour together with Adven's experts.

During the tour, particular interest was shown in the diversified fuel mix and the electric boiler, both of which provide flexibility in production. The group was also inspired by Adven’s work to monitor very high hot water flows through each district heating substation.

“When we see major deviations in a building’s energy consumption, we contact the property owner and inform them. This way, we can help reduce overall energy use,” says Alessandro Canu, Production Manager at Adven's site in Nynäshamn.

Experiences from Nynäshamn shared globally

Nynäshamn was one of the last larger towns in Sweden to implement district heating. Jonas Dyrke, Business Development Manager at Adven and one of the guides during the visit, was involved in building the CHP plant in 2004. Since then, both the facility and the collaboration with local industry have continuously evolved.

“It is encouraging that the work being done here in Nynäshamn is generating international interest. It shows that local energy solutions can also have an impact far beyond Sweden’s borders,” says Jonas Dyrke.

Adam Hinge, Managing Director of Sustainable Energy Partnership, was part of the delegation. In his daily work, he leads a consulting firm in New York that supports energy efficiency programs, both internationally for governments and locally with New York as its base.

"Our delegation was extremely impressed by how Sweden and the energy companies here have really managed to create strong conditions for long-term sustainability in practice. We are looking forward to bringing the knowledge we have gathered over the last few days back to the U.S.," Adam concludes.

For more information, please contact:

Jonas Dyrke, Business Development Manager Adven, jonas.dyrke@adven.com

Sofie Fjellgren, Senior Business Developer International Markets Swedish Energy Agency, sofie.fjellgren@energimyndigheten.se 

About Adven in Nynäshamn

• The combined heat and power plant in Nynäshamn was completed in 2004. It supplies the local refinery with process steam and delivers district heating to buildings throughout Nynäshamn.
• The plant’s main fuel is recycled wood. Since 2022, the facility has been gradually expanded to also recover energy from additional types of waste-derived fuels. Approximately 20 percent of the energy delivered in Nynäshamn consists of excess heat from the refinery.
• The collaboration with the local refinery Nynas, the world’s first bio-based oil refinery, has been ongoing for more than 20 years and is a key part of the local energy system.
• Adven delivers approximately 220 GWh per year, corresponding to the heating of around 11,000 single-family homes.

About Swedish District Heating

• There are more than 250 district heating networks across Sweden.
• More than half of all homes and premises in Sweden are heated with district heating.
• The district heating sector has seen a steady reduction in fossil fuels since the 1980s, and this development continues.
• Today, just over 2 percent of the fuel mix is fossil-based. More than 45 percent of heat comes from forest fuels and bio-oils, just over 20 percent from waste, of which the majority is biogenic, and 8 percent from industrial excess heat.
  
  

Facts from Swedenergy.