Göteborg Energi AB
As Western Sweden`s leading energy company, we provide our customers with energy services, broadband, district heating, cooling, natural gas and the electricity supply network. We aim to create energy solutions that are sustainable in the long term.
Company details
Find locations served, office locations
- Business Type:
- Service provider
- Industry Type:
- Energy
- Market Focus:
- Internationally (various countries)
- Employees:
- Over 1000
About Us
Environmental work
Our vision is that we shall actively contribute towards the development of a sustainable society in Göteborg.
We realise our vision in that the energy we convert and deliver consumes a minimum of natural resources and leads to low emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutants.
The single most important environmental issue is that our operations must contribute as little as possible to the greenhouse effect. We do this in several ways, the most important environmental of which are the types of energy and fuel we use, and the technology we use in our production plants.
Waste heat for production of district heating
For the production of hot water in the district heating system we primarily use waste heat from industries and the incineration of refuse. Waste heat accounts for 86 per cent of the fuel mix for district heat production.
The diagram shows the total production of heat and emissions from Göteborg Energi from 1973.
Research and Development
Researching the future
The energy sector is evolving continuously. Climate change is in the spotlight. We intend to remain at the forefront and are investing in research and development in many fields.
We finance outside research and development through our own Foundation for Research and Development. We conduct our own development projects, large and small, and we are involved in industry-wide research projects. We want to take a responsible role in future issues and therefore see research and development as a central element in our vision of a sustainable Gothenburg.
Research foundation
The Foundation for Research and Development is led by a board made up of members of the presiding committee of Göteborg Energi. A research council has been set up with representatives from universities, colleges and research institutes.
The foundation has limited funds and we need to prioritise areas of research. Our research and development initiatives focus on the following areas:
Strategies for sustainable energy systems.
Values, behaviours and decisions of stakeholders in the energy market.
Technology for sustainable energy systems.
Gothenburg Biomass Gasification Project, GoBiGas
In the eighties national natural gas grid was built in southern and western parts of Sweden, with natural gas from Denmark. This network is an important part of the conversion to renewable energy. Gothenburg Energy have invested heavily in biogas and sees biogas as one of tomorrow's most important energy sources. A major benefit of biogas is that you can use the existing natural gas grid for distribution. Natural gas is becoming a bridge over to the renewable biogas.
Gothenburg Biomass Gasification Project, GoBiGas, is the name of Göteborg Energi's large investments in biogas production by gasification of biofuels and waste from forestry. The project is run in partnership with E.ON. GoBiGas was granted financial aid at 222 million in September from the Swedish Energy Agency, as one of three selected projects, provided acceptance from the European Commission. In 2020 Göteborg Energi expects to deliver biogas equivalent of 1 TWh. It represents about 30 percent of current deliveries in Gothenburg or fuel to 100 000 cars.
Biogas replaces natural gas – biomass becomes biogas
The GoBiGas biogas project is about producing biomethane (Bio-SNG) by thermal gasification of forest residues as branches, roots and tops. The biomass is converted to a flammable gas in the gasification plant. This so-called synthesis gas is purified and then upgraded in a methanation plant to biogas with a quality comparable to natural gas to enable the two types of gases to be mixed in the gas network, until the natural gas is phased out. Since biogas is produced from renewable sources this does not contribute to increasing emissions of carbon dioxide as fossil fuels do.
GoBiGas based on new technology
In spring 2006, Göteborg Energi conducted a feasibility study with Swedish and Dutch expertise in order to compare the technology and economics of the two gasification technologies, indirect gasification and pressurized oxygen blown gasification. In 2007 in-depth studies of various gasification technologies with multiple suppliers were carried out. The choice fell on indirect gasification with technology from the Austrian company Repotec, based on technical and economical performance and operational experience.
Göteborg Energi cooperates in particular with Chalmers University of Technology and has invested in a research facility for the indirect gasification constructed together with an existing biofuel boiler, built with CFB technology.
In 2008/2009 a Basic Design was conducted of the proposed technique for stage 1. Repotec has built a small gas plant in Güssing, Austria, which has been in commercial operation since 2002. Adjacent, on the same site, there is also a pilot methanation plant, based on technology from the Swiss company CTU. From October 2009 to January 2010 the GoBiGas project involved operational staff from this site in order to evaluate the technology.
Objective to achieve good performance
In the choice of technology and plant design the project aims to get as high efficiency as possible. The goal is to reach 65 percent of the biomass into biogas, and that the overall energy efficiency will be over 90 percent.
The plant is split into two stages
The gasification plant is scheduled to be built in two stages, the first stage (about 20 MWgas) is planned to be operational in 2013. The second stage (about 80-100 MWgas) is scheduled to be in service in 2016. How and when to implement stage two will be decided after an evaluation of the stage one plant.
Localization in the Rya area on Hisingen
Stage 1 will be built in the Rya harbour, on the same site as the existing Rya hot water plant, just off the Älvsborgs bridge. The plan for the location of Stage 2 is on a nearby plot of land with jetty access. The location has been chosen so that the plant will be close to a hub for the electricity, gas and district heating networks in Gothenburg, and also allowing a long-term and flexible fuel reception because it has the potential for both ship and rail transport. Cooling water to the process can be taken from adjacent Göta River.
Biogas - the Fuel of the Future
Biogas is a renewable fuel that is extracted from sewage sludge and compost, for example.
In spring 2007, we opened the world's largest biogas upgrading facility - the Gasendal plant in Gothenburg. The plant receives biogas from Gryaab, a local wastewater treatment plant, and upgrades it to natural gas quality, with an annual capacity of around 60 GWh.
In spring 2008 we opended a biogas upgrading facility in Falköping, in partnership with the Municipality of Falköping, Falbygdens Energi and Fordonsgas.
Göteborg Energi is keen to establish more partnerships with various other organizations, with the aim of continuing the development of biogas - the fuel of the future.