– It has really paid off, says Christer Edstrand.
In the spring of 2018, discussions began with SBP about building a solar panel system. Now, just over three and a half years later, the Stockholm-based real estate company Väderholmen has a total of approximately 2500 square meters of solar cell surface with a total output of just over 460 kilowatts.
On October 21, the staff could look at the visualization screen at the head office in Västberga and see the figures tick over towards a milestone in their own sustainability vision – they had reached one million kilowatt hours of self-produced solar electricity.
– It feels good, it has really paid off, I must say. If we had a larger roof, we would put up even more, says Christer Edstrand, technical manager at Väderholmen.
For a long time, the Stockholm-based real estate company Väderholmen had been looking for ways to optimize the energy of its properties. The head office itself is located in a 70s building in Västberga and consumed a lot of electricity, where, among other things, the windows were identified as an energy thief.
Then they started looking towards producing their own electricity.
– Saving energy in old houses is really not easy, and we have many cooling machines that consume a lot of electricity. Producing electricity with the help of solar energy has been important to us because we have a great responsibility in our role as landlord. Most tenants have sustainable energy as a requirement today, and we see it as a must for the future. It feels like we have really succeeded well with the solar panels, and that also made us start offering electric car charging to our tenants, he says.
”The facilities show that Väderholmen is serious”
When they were looking for a supplier of solar energy, Christer Edstrand met a handful of players and finally settled on Sustainable Business Partner. Now, four plants have been built with premium quality components and high safety awareness in the technology choices. Alexander Backström has been the project manager for the plants and praises Väderholmen's sustainability commitment.
– They have shown over the years that they have really invested in converting to green energy. They made four plants close to each other, and that shows that they are serious about wanting to convert sustainably and that they will become more self-sufficient, he says.
For Christer Edstrand, it is the monitoring services and service agreements that SBP stands for that create the feeling that the plants are completely self-sufficient.
– We chose SBP as a supplier because it felt like the most honest and genuine player. I then said to my superiors that “I believe in them one hundred percent” and I have certainly not regretted that for a second. SBP has delivered exactly as it was said and flowed on without problems during all the projects. With the help of monitoring services, I don't have to do so much, Alexander has full control and it feels safe.
So Alexander and SBP get high marks?
– Yes, five out of five inverters!
Searching for more sustainable opportunities
Now a milestone has been reached, but the work for greener properties continues. Solar energy has enabled tenants to charge their electric cars, and they continue to review the possibilities of installing more plants in the future, with the same intensity as before.
– We are constantly looking at how we can streamline our properties, saving electricity has become an important must here in Sweden. We continue to work to install even more solar panels and hope that our tenants can take part in even more sustainable energy, concludes Christer Edstrand.
6 quick questions with
ANDREAS DUFVA, technical manager at Väderholmen.
Congratulations on the milestone! How and why is it important to you?
– For every kilowatt hour purchased that we can generate ourselves, we contribute to two benefits: partly it is a cost we avoid, and partly we do not have to buy electricity from an actor where we cannot fully know where it comes from in purely sustainability terms.
What does sustainability mean to you at Väderholmen?
– For us, sustainability means protecting the environment for future generations. We want to actively work with sustainability in most of what we do.
Do you work sustainably in ways other than just energy?
– No more than the usual in private, such as source separation, being mindful of paper usage and water consumption, and so on. We have strong commitments and it is something we employees have to think about all the time.
As an employee at Väderholmen, what makes you extra proud from a sustainability perspective?
– That we can also contribute. Even if we are not on par with the very largest companies, we can also do something for the environment.
What is your, or your personal, vision for the future of Väderholmen?
– We clearly want to expand the solar cell stock and generate more solar energy. Then we will also look at other forms such as air heat pumps and other things in the future. Actually, everything that feels interesting, he says and continues:
– In addition, there is currently a phase-out of equipment such as gasoline-powered hedge trimmers and the like, and will slowly but surely be replaced with electric-powered equipment. The hope is that we can utilize our sustainable energy for that. We are moving towards electricity in most things and taking one thing at a time.
Finally - when will you reach your next green milestone?
– What we have achieved today has taken a couple of years. But if we can scale back maybe 75 percent of the time with the help of the experience we have today to reach two million, that would be great!
Want to know more about renewable energy and its benefits? Read more about solar energy here.
