Invest in Dalarna Agency

The new owner on Jofa's brand: "Investigating if we can do more" Last week, the agreement where Swedish Altor Equity Partners is to acquire a significant majority stake hockey brand CCM Hockey was made public. Andreas Källström Säfweräng, who was Altor's representative, explains why they chose to acquire this particular company. And what Altor thinks about the next steps. In 1973, founder Niss Oskar Jonsson sold his life's work, Jofa, to Volvo. The company was then sold on and has been in the hands of foreign owners for over 40 years. Until now. The production of company’s products, all except for bandy balls, moved to China in 2012. However, the European warehouse for CCM Hockey, of which Jofa is today a part, has remained in Malung-Sälens kommun. Today, Altor, with Harald Mix from Borlänge as co-founder, is the owner of CCM Hockey. There are several reasons why the large investment company chooses to partner with CCM Hockey. - For us, the people behind a company are always very important. In CCM Hockey, the team that leads the company is what we are looking for, says Andreas Källström Säfweräng, responsible for the consumer sector at Altor. He helped start up the investment project and has been involved in the process during the three months it has been running. CCM Hockey's long history of 125 years and the fact that it is the world's oldest manufacturer of hockey equipment have also been heavily contributing factors to Altor's interest. - They have been at the forefront of the development of protection and products and have some of the world's best players attached to them. Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby for example. We believe in that innovation and what can come in the future, continues Andreas Källström Säfweräng. #investindalarna https://bit.ly/47ZQTXC

More tourists in Dalarna this summer - thanks to foreign visitors Tourism in Dalarna increased this summer compared to last year. The largest increase is accounted for by foreign guests, with Norway at the top. The trend this year is that the tourists have stayed longer than earlier years. The total number of guest nights in Dalarna increased by 1.4 percent during June, July and August compared to last year's summer months, according to statistics from Tillvaxtverket, the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth. The foreign tourists is the segment where we see the largest increase in Dalarna. Norwegians have been the most diligent visitors, and camping as a type of accommodation has increased the most, compared to 2023 – with 13 percent. In addition to Norway, most foreign visitors come from the Netherlands and Germany. This year, the average length of stay of the foreign guests has also increased significantly. The statistics show that they stay 6.6 days on average, which is 1.7 days longer than in 2023. Living in a cabin or an apartment is the type of accommodation they prefer the most. - Dalarna has a nice recovery after last summer, which was negatively affected by the extensive rainy weather. The low exchange rate for the Swedish krona has also had a positive impact, says Chatarina Eriksson, CEO of Visit Dalarna in a press release. - The trend shows that guests generally book later, but here we see that packaged experiences are often booked further in advance and that the trip is carried out regardless of the weather. Hiking and cycling are among the most popular experiences. Investments have been made in trail infrastructure in Dalarna. Areas such as Sälenfjällen, Orsa Grönklitt and SÄFSEN RESORT AB now have new trails for both cycling and hiking. Visit Dalarna has invested SEK 10 million in ten municipalities in the region of Dalarna. - We see that the number of international guests continues to increase, which is in line with our plan and the efforts we are making for more companies to reach the international market, says Chatarina Eriksson. #investindalarna #visitdalarna https://bit.ly/3Y1tBw1

Kasi Tech's innovation can redefine the automotive industry With an innovative hybrid technology that can significantly reduce fuel consumption in cars, the company aims to become a large player within the industry. Kasi Tech has now received additional funding from the EU to develop its product. Kasi Technologies is a Swedish company based in that manufactures an application for car engines that reduces fuel consumption. They have developed a technology that could revolutionize the automotive industry by making existing vehicles more environmentally friendly. - We have something we call "Electrification Made Easy". We convert all existing petrol and diesel engines to electric hybrids in four hours in any workshop, says Isak Löfgren, CEO of Kasi Tech, and continues: - We sell this system for SEK 50-60,000, which is one tenth of the cost to buy a new electric car. Our customers have a payback time of approximately one year, explains Löfgren. The company's market potential is significant, current customers includes Borlänge Taxi and the County Admin Board in Dalarna. With 128 secured orders and discussions with major fleet owners, Kasi Tech is well on its way to scaling up its operations. EU funding has been a critical component of Kasi Tech's progress. Through the EU's EIC (European Innovation Council) accelerator program, the company has received the resources required to take its product from concept to market. The funding amounts to a total of two million euros, which corresponds to SEK 22,532,660. - Kasi Tech is one of two Swedish companies that has received this type of funding, which in itself is huge, says Fredrik Rönning (S), the Mayor of Smedjebackens Kommun. - For the past two years, we have been financed via the EU's "top of the line" program for green innovative technology, which has made our product’s development and industrialization possible, says Löfgren. In order to reach its full potential and a turnover of double-digit billion amounts, continued investments are required. Sofie Eriksson, Social Democrat from Grängesberg and Member of European Parliament for Sweden who recently joined the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, emphasizes the importance of companies like Kasi Tech for the green transition in Europe. - It is important that we have solutions that can be applied today and that provide immediate CO2 savings and cost savings for the customers, says Eriksson. With a strong local anchoring and global vision, Kasi Tech is an example of how Swedish innovation can lead the way towards a greener automotive industry. - These are fantastic opportunities and the timing is absolutely right - that it is happening in Smedjebacken makes one extra proud, says Roger Sjöberg, Head of the Business Department at Smedjebacken municipality. #investindalarna #smarttransportation https://bit.ly/4dtYBKT

I tisdags besökte vi EcoDataCenter tillsammans med Business Sweden och näringslivskontoret i Falun. Det är så häftigt att se utvecklingen på site. Med nya byggnader på plats vid varje nytt besök. Över 300 personer går till jobbet här varje dag. Imponerande resa så här långt och den bara fortsätter!

Industry waste can become new products and create more jobs – in the Business Accelerator for Circular Solutions. SSAB, Arctic Paper and Gevalia create a lot of waste and residual products. "Garbage" that can be used in new ways. Nine companies are involved in the search for new products and more jobs. - We want to accelerate the green transition in Dalarna, says Cecilia Carter at Dalarna Science Park. The focus is now on waste and residual products from three major industries in Borlänge, Grycksbo and Gävle. Within the framework of an ongoing project, around 40 companies have been interviewed - nine have now been selected to participate in the development programme. What is sought are creative small and medium-sized companies that can develop the waste into something new. To find entrepreneurs who can make use of the industries' waste and transform it into long-term sustainable solutions. - We want to produce a green product, explains Cecilia Carter. She hopes that in the not too distant future there will be finished products to present. She is completely convinced that the work will yield results. - It is the engineer in me speaking, says Cecilia Carter. For SSAB, it's about making use of mill scale, iron hydroxide sludge and grinding swarf in new ways. A lot is taken care of today, but in the future, alternatives are needed as the green transition to fossil-free production produces consequential effects. Part of the waste is put in a landfill. - When we change, a side effect is that it becomes a little more difficult for us to recycle certain materials internally. This is an opportunity to find alternatives so that it can continue to be recycled in a good way, says Erik Grånäs, responsible for by-product sales at SSAB. Everything is still at a very early stage. - If we do not find a use for the residuals, in the worst case we have to deposit or destroy. It is not good for the environment and it is a cost. We hope to avoid that, says Erik Grånäs. For Arctic Paper Grycksbo, participation is about looking at new areas of use for sludge and waste heat. For Gevalia Kaffe something completely different. Coffee bean husks and a mixture of coffee waste and plastic packaging  are what can find new uses. Cecilia Carter looks forward to the continuation and says that the ambition is for the programme: The Circular Industry Accelerator—a multi-year initiative aimed at utilizing residual streams from the regional business sector, is to become a part of Dalarna Science Park's offer. #investindalarna #sustainableproduction https://bit.ly/47QSqzs

EcoDC has started preparations for the establishment in Kvarnsveden The deal was announced at the beginning of September. Northvolt sells the site in Kvarnsveden, where the former paper mill was located, to the municipal property company Fastighets AB Hushagen. Hushagen sells one third of the site to EcoDataCenter, which gets access to the land sometime in October. The company is already starting preparations for the establishment in Kvarnsveden. - We have been looking at Kvarnsveden for many years. We are already working on the environmental permit. That's the first thing we need to do and the process is expected to take about a year, says Johan Appelberg, Site Manager at Ecodatacenter. When the environmental permit is approved, Ecodatacenter intends to start construction of the first data center. - We will probably build them in pairs, so there will be two at a time. The investment for one data center building is approximately SEK 1.5 billion. These are large investments, says Johan Appelberg. It takes approximately 20 months from the time the shovel is put in the ground until the first data center is ready. In 32-36 months, two data centers will be up and running. According to the company, 80-90 percent of the actors who build the facility are local, in collaboration with ByggPartner. - In Falun there are approximately 350 construction workers every day and have been like that for the past four years. In Kvarnsveden in Borlänge kommun , Johan Appelberg expects 400-450 workers on site. The construction project is planned to last 8-10 years. According to Ecodatacenter, there will be at least 200 jobs in the facility when in operation. Johan Appelberg believes that the industry has the potential to become a new basic industry in Sweden. - There is a lot of talk about the fact that in a data center there is one person who goes and presses a button and it works. That's not true. It's like in any industry. Paper and steel are produced. It is the machines around you that you control. We manufacture IT. There is no difference. The big difference is that there is not so much transport to and from the site. Two or three transports a day. Johan Appelberg says that a data center building is approximately 13,000 square meters. 2,500 square meters is the data center itself, which is rented out to customers. - The rest is all our technical equipment. We have heat exchangers, cooling systems, switchgear, battery systems and the entire infrastructure. In Kvarnsveden, there could be ten data centers of various sizes. #investindalarna #sustainabledatacenter #sustainableindustry https://bit.ly/3Bh9WAt

Boliden informs about plans to increase production Mining company Boliden informs about a large increase in production. The company will apply for permission to mine 28 percent more ore at the Garpenberg Mine in Hedemora kommun. - Nothing is decided, but it is a signal of what we are working towards. I feels very good, says Pär Göting, Area Manager for Boliden in Garpenberg. Ten years ago, Boliden invested SEK 3.9 billion in the mine in Garpenberg. The investment made possible an increase in mining, from 1.5 million tons to 2.5 million tons of ore per year. Since then, production has gradually increased, and mining is approaching the current permit limit of 3.5 million tonnes per year. That's why Boliden wants to increase production further, and by a substantial step - 28 percent. The company wants to get the environmental permit changed so that the company gets the right to mine up to 4.5 million tons per year. - We have a fairly large ore base. We are looking at how we can use it. We think we have a great business here in Garpenberg and we have a permit for 3.5 million tonnes. We want to have some space left until the permit limit, then we have to take height for future opportunities, says Pär Göting. Boliden will shortly invite to a public consultation meeting. Two investments are mentioned in the documents for the meeting. The company may need a new plant for the production of sand paste. Another investment that Boliden mentions in the documents is a new shaft, but that may be a few more years ahead. #investindalarna #sustainablemining https://bit.ly/3ztD72F

Borlänge municipality buys the Northvolt site Borlänge municipality buys the site in Kvarnsveden. Parts of the site are then sold to datacenter company Ecodatacenter. This was announced by Mayor and Chairman of the Municipal Board in Borlänge kommun, Erik Nises (S), on Friday. Borlänge municipality and Northvolt have agreed that the municipality will buy parts of the industrial plant - approximately two-thirds. The price tag is described as heavily discounted. In total, the municipality buys the facility for SEK 500 million. Tne next step in this deal will be for the municipal real estate company Fastighets AB Hushagen to buy the site in Kvarnsveden from the municipality, this will happen on Tuesday. Then Hushagen will sell part of the site to the Falu-based data center company EcoDataCenter - which buys the land for SEK 400 million. Ecodatacenter will invest another SEK 75 million, together with the municipality, in various investments in connection with the site. The plan is that the data center investment will employ around 200 employees. About twice as many during the construction period. The site that Hushagen will own includes roughly 40 hectares of industrial land. Ecodatacenter's CEO points out that the company's already local presence in the area means that they will be able to quickly get started in Borlänge. - We are very excited. For us, this deal is an incredibly important piece of the puzzle. We really want to work for it to be good for the residents and the municipality and are very much looking forward to taking the first steps, says Peter Michelson, CEO of Ecodatacenter. #investindalarna #sustainabledatacenter https://bit.ly/3XAWiRu

AI Hyperscaler Coreweave chooses Falun The rumors of this summer turned out to be true. Part of the American AI Hyperscaler Coreweave's large investment across Europe ends up in Falun. “One of Europe's most powerful AI computers will be built in Falun. The partnership with Coreweave is proof that our commitment to sustainability and technology leadership makes us the leading AI factory in Europe," says Peter Michelson, CEO of EcoDataCenter in a press release. Ecodatacenter’s site in Falun will host one of Europe’s first large-scale NVIDIA Blackwell clusters in Sweden. According to Ecodatacenter the collaboration aims to “significantly boost compute capacity across Europe”. According to Swedish newspaper SvD Näringsliv, around SEK 8 billion will be invested in the facility in Falun. ”This deployment will enable us to support the growing demand for AI and high-performance computing across the continent, providing our clients with advanced processing power and efficiency. This is a crucial step in our European expansion, where EcoDataCenter's sustainable and advanced technology is central to our success”, says Mike Mattacola, Chief Business Officer of CoreWeave in a press release. The total investment is around SEK 22 billion, which is distributed among the data centers in Europe. "That CoreWeave chooses to establish itself here not only speaks to the quality of EcoDataCenter's operations, but also shows that Falun is a good municipality for companies to operate in and collaborate with, which makes me both happy and proud" says Liza Lundberg (S), Chairman of the Municipal Executive Board in Falu kommun in a press release. Ecodatacenter runs its datacenters on 100% renewable energy and part of the waste heat is recycled to make wood pellets. At the moment, about 300 people are working on site in Falun. #investindalarna #sustainabledatacenters https://bit.ly/3TfGZex

Hitachi Energy wins major contract with Swedish TSO Svenska kraftnät The contract includes 7 transformers and 48 shunt reactors from Hitachi Energy. Everything will be manufactured at the site in Ludvika kommun, says Tobias Hansson, Hitachi Energy's Country Manager for Sweden. The contract is worth around SEK 2.5 billion and the group has worked for around a year to win it, according to Mr. Hansson. Tobias Hansson is happy and pleased that Hitachi Energy won the order, an order in some respects historic. - This is the largest single order so far in terms of power transformers for the Swedish market. And for our part, it is one of the largest transformer and reactor orders for the factory in Ludvika. Hitachi Energy is undergoing a strong expansion, especially in Sweden. Tobias Hansson says that so far this year, they have recruited just over 1,000 people in Sweden. - I think that almost 90 percent of the applications are for Ludvika. We have an even higher pace than last year, last year we landed at just over 1,000 for the whole year. Tobias Hansson says that there is high interest for the new positions and that, for the most part, they have no problems attracting competence even for key positions. #investindalarna #smartenergysystems https://bit.ly/3WV7C9u