STOCKHOLM, December 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Sweden is a world leader in bioenergy and renewable vehicle fuels, and is the fastest growing windpower market in Europe. There are excellent investment opportunities for Indian investors, as Sweden can offer innovative and sustainable cleantech solutions for the future.

Major Swedish cities have integrated the planning of transport and traffic, water and sewage treatment, waste collection, and housing to create sustainable cities with low carbon footprints. Sweden lowered its carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide emissions by up to 60 percent from 1990 to 2006, while the Swedish economy grew by some 40 percent during the same period.

Business opportunities

Representatives from the Swedish cleantech industry will be present at the Volvo Ocean Race Village in Willingdon in Kochi on 12 December to meet Indian investors. The aim is to strengthen the Swedish cleantech industry with further investment and expansion within areas such as bioenergy, renewable fuels, wind power, sustainable building, waste and recycling, water and wastewater, and environmental engineering.

A leader in bioenergy

A quarter of Sweden's energy consumption is generated from bioenergy. Sweden's ability to distribute its bioenergy owes much to a well-developed district heating system, which 75 percent of commercial buildings and more than 50 percent of Swedish homes are connected to. Increasing volumes of biogas are distributed in the natural gas grid, allowing for wider and more industrialized biogas applications.

Innovative solutions in biofuel

A number of innovative biofuel companies are developing solutions based on Sweden's forestry assets. Three technologies are about to be launched commercially; extracting DME dimethyl ether from black liquor, manufacturing green diesel from pine oil, and a technology that developes biofuel as an alternative to jet fuel.

Increasing wind power

Sweden's coastline offers the perfect location for wind farm construction and will see extensive developments over the next decade. The target for wind power output is 30TWh by 2020, a 20-fold increase compared with today's production levels. To reach that goal, some 5,000 new wind turbines are needed.

Sweden is a world leader in developing entrepreneurial companies in the cleantech space, says Bernie Bulkin, venture partner and senior advisor at cleantech venture capital firm VantagePoint Venture Partners.

For further information: Rolf Rising, Director, Automotive and Cleantech business units, Invest in Sweden Agency, Tel: +46(0)70-634-08-20, Email: rolf.rising@isa.se