Sweden’s energy minister says green innovation is a ‘good selling point’ for joining NATO | Climate news

The country’s energy minister told Sky News that Sweden’s energy independence and green innovation should be a “good selling point” as the country looks to join the NATO security alliance.

Khashayar Farmanbar also said he was “really concerned” about how dependent the rest of Europe was on Russian oil and gas, with Sweden leading the way, for example.

Speaking to Sky News at a new green steel project in Lulea, in the north of the country, he said: “Compared to many other NATO countries… I can say that we are one of the safest countries in terms of safety. most energy.

“The green transition creates a lot of new jobs, it gives us energy security, but really it also helps us save the planet so it’s habitable for humanity in the future.

“And I think that in itself is a very good selling point for Sweden’s application to join NATO.”

When asked if Europe has any lessons to learn from Sweden, which has almost completely decarbonised by generating electricity with a mix of hydro, nuclear and wind, he replied: “Definitely , I would say … we are here to work together and make sure that happens .

“The need for Europe and around the world to stop using fossil fuels is huge.

“That work must continue at a rapid pace.

“What Russia’s aggression is doing towards Ukraine shows that we need to accelerate this process even more and if there’s anything Sweden can do then take the lead and show how we can do that.” we can be less dependent on fossil fuels. in general, but specifically on Russian energy imports.”

He also criticized the UK’s decision to issue new permits to mine fossil fuels in the North Sea, calling it “the wrong way to go in the long run”.

“I see how some countries want to do it in the short term,” he said.

“Because right now … getting rid of Russian fossil imports can be really challenging. But in the long run, it’s the wrong path.”

Mr Farmanbar spoke to Sky News at a first green hydrogen storage facility of its kind, where pressurized gas reserves are kept in a special sealed cave deep underground.

The facility is part of the HYBRIT green steel project, a partnership between steel company SSAB, mining company LKAB and energy company Vattenfall.

Steelmaking is notoriously difficult to decarbonise because coal is burned and carbon is released as part of the manufacturing process.

Steel is also an important material to the modern world – used in everything from homes, bridges, hospitals and schools to cars and turbines.

Its widespread use is why the steelmaking industry is responsible for almost 8% of global carbon emissions.

But the HYBRIT project has found a way to swap coal with green hydrogen, removing the dirtiest part of the process.

Mikael Nordlander, decarbonisation industry manager at HYBRIT, said: “When we started working on this in 2016, it was in some cases considered a crazy idea but now, six years later, We have come a long way.

“It really works.”

Small batches of green steel are already used in construction vehicles manufactured by the Volvo company, but it is very new technology and will not be marketed for the next few years.

It is also about 20-30% more expensive than traditional steel, although costs are expected to decrease as production increases.

Volvo Cars’ head of procurement, Kerstin Enochsson is confident that consumers will be willing to pay a green premium and is overseeing a plan to eventually make all of the company’s vehicles from green steel.

On the production floor in Gothenburg, she told Sky News: “It may be a little more expensive but at the same time we see that C02 is also an expense.

“I’m very sure our customers will be asking for fossil-free products in the long run. We’re sure this is the right bet.”

SSAB chief technology officer Martin Pei said: “We believe this is the right direction for the steel industry and it will also be a good step for us to take in our business, because We believe this will be the way steel is made in the future.

“And we want to be the leaders and create this market, and our customers will initially be willing to pay a small premium to make this happen and that will be good for everyone.” People.”

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