Sweden – Impact Lab

Energy, government, Green Friendly, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy

Transforming homes into power stations – how Sweden is disrupting energy production

October 2, 2020

54% of Sweden’s power comes from renewables and this energy is increasingly local.
Smart grids are switching Swedish homes from energy consumers to power-making ‘prosumers.’
Local ‘district heating’ plants use excess heat to warm the majority of Swedish homes.
Sweden tops the World Economic Forum’s Energy Transitions Index

By 2030, almost a third of all the energy consumed in the European Union must come from renewable sources, according to binding targets agreed in 2018. Sweden is helping lead the way.

As well as targeting 100% renewable electricity production by 2040, the country is transforming homes into highly efficient ‘prosumers’ – buildings which both produce and consume the vast majority of their own energy.

Continue reading… “Transforming homes into power stations – how Sweden is disrupting energy production”

Bitcoin, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

What can we learn from Sweden, the ultimate cashless society?

October 16, 2019

Demand for notes and coins in Sweden is so limp that cash is literally disappearing: the amount in circulation has fallen 27.5pc in the last four year

The collapse of cash in Britain has been dramatic. There were 11.5 billion fewer cash transactions in 2018 than in 2008 – a decline of 51pc. It’s a pace of change that has surprised everyone, even industry insiders.

“The rise of the debit card and the decline of cash is the phenomenon of the last decade,” says Adrian Buckle, head of research for UK Finance, the banking sector trade body.

But Britain, while on the podium, is not the world champion in cashless. That title goes to Sweden, where demand for notes and coins is so limp that cash is literally disappearing: the amount in circulation has fallen from 80bn kronor (£6.6bn) to Skr58bn (£4.8bn) in the last four years, a reduction of 27.5pc. The same period has seen ATM withdrawals fall by more than half.

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Driverless vehicles, Electric Vehicles, Science & Technology News, Transportation

Einride’s T-pod L4 driverless trucks hit public roads in Sweden

June 6, 2019

Einride is entering a new phase it development, as it deploys self-driving trucks in Sweden. The service is part of the startup’s ongoing collaboration with German logistics group DB Schenker. Both businesses have been working together on launching driverless vehicles since 2018.

Swedish transport authorities approved Einride’s deployment plans through the issuance of a pubic road permit. Based on the details of the permit, the startup’s autonomous trucks are allowed to travel from a warehouse to a terminal. The short route includes roads within an industrial hub in Jonkoping, Sweden. During operation, the self-driving trucks can travel up to 3.1 mph (5 km/hr).

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Electric Vehicles, Green Friendly, Science & Technology News, Transportation

Sweden is building a road that recharges electric buses that drive over it

April 26, 2019

One of the biggest hassles for electric car owners is having to charge them. To get around the problem of needing to provide myriad electric charging stations, the Swedish transport administration is exploring the idea of having special roads which charge vehicles’ batteries as they drive over them.

To showcase the concept, the Smart Road Gotland consortium will be building an initial 1 mile stretch of road between the town of Visby and the airport on Gotland Island in Sweden. The road will be used to charge an electric truck and bus, using technology developed by the company Electreon, which will be carrying out construction. The majority of the $12.5 million project is funded by the Swedish government.

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Bitcoin, Blockchain, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Sweden: How to live in the world’s first cashless society

March 8, 2019

Sweden goes from being the first in adopting banknotes in Europe in 1661 to introducing its own digital currency in 2021, and becoming the first world’s cashless society in 2023.

How is a country becoming the world’s first cashless society? Sweden, one of the most technologically advanced nations on the planet, is leading the way.

Sweden is expected to become the world’s first cashless society by March 2023. By then, cash will not be accepted any longer as a means of payment in Sweden.

Sweden has always been one of the first countries in embracing new technologies. There is a tradition in Sweden about being the first. This is noticeable throughout the Scandinavian country’s history. And its financial system is not the exception.

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Automation, Driverless vehicles, Electric Vehicles, Transportation

New Volvo Trucks autonomous semi is a cables tractor pod

October 8, 2018

Unlike any other autonomous semi trucks concepts out there – from Daimler Trucks, Tesla or California startup Thor – Volvo’s Vera has no driver’s cabin and looks like a flat Tesla S with space for just the powertrain and the battery pack.VOLVO

Volvo Trucks, the world’s second-biggest heavy-duty truck maker behind Daimler Trucks, unveiled Wednesday its first all-electric driverless freight truck, dubbed Vera.

Unlike any other semi trucks concepts out there – from Daimler Trucks, Tesla or California startup Thor – Volvo’s Vera has no driver’s cabin and looks like a semi-truck tractor pod or a flat Tesla S with space for just the drivetrain and the 300 kW lithium-ion battery pack that gives it a range of up to 187 miles (300 kilometers).

“It’s designed to be safe, it’s quiet and totally predictable, down to cost savings,” said Michael Karlsson, vice-president of Autonomous Solutions at Volvo Trucks. “Nothing similar to what you’ve seen from us before. In fact, it’s impossible to drive.”

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Biotech, cutting edge, Human Behavior

Thousands of Swedes are choosing to have microchips inserted into their bodies. Here’s why

June 27, 2018

Thousands of people in Sweden have inserted microchips, which can function as contactless credit cards, key cards and even rail cards, into their bodies.

Once the chip is underneath your skin, there is no longer any need to worry about misplacing a card or carrying a heavy wallet. But for many people, the idea of carrying a microchip in their body feels more dystopian than practical.

Some have suggested that Sweden’s strong welfare state may be the cause of this recent trend. But actually, the factors behind why roughly 3,500 Swedes have had microchips implanted in them are more complex than you might expect.

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Automobiles, Electric Automobile, Tesla

Volvo prepares to take on Tesla with a revamped Polestar

October 25, 2017

VOLVO is in the midst of a reincarnation. The Swedish automaker is leaving behind its former life as the maker of super safe, super boxy wagons, and embracing an existence dedicated to technological prowess, electric propulsion, and svelte design.

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Analysis, Business, Latest Trend, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Sweden is close to being the first country in the world to eliminate cash

October 28, 2014

It could take up to the year 2030 for physical money to disappear from Sweden’s system altogether.

Four out of five purchases in Sweden are paid for electronically or by card according to a new report from the Swedish news organization, The Local. They also report that Swedes are using electronic payments 260 times per person, per year.

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Analysis, Great Videos, People Making a Difference, Recycling, Science & Technology News

Sweden now recycles 99 percent of its garbage

September 12, 2014

Sweden burns half its rubbish to generate energy.

People in Sweden generally waste as much as people in other countries, around 461 kilograms per person each year. But only one percent of that waste is ending up in landfills, thanks to the country’s innovative “recycling” program. (Video)

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Alternative Transportation, Science & Technology News

Volvo testing self-driving cars on public roads in Sweden

May 9, 2014

Volvo’s Drive Me project

Volvo Car Group’s “Drive Me” project — featuring 100 self-driving Volvos on public roads in everyday driving conditions — is moving forward rapidly, with the first test cars now driving around the Swedish city of Gothenburg.

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Alternative Transportation, Globalism, Great Videos, Science & Technology News

Volvo will introduce fleet of self-driving cars in Sweden by 2017

December 6, 2013

100 lucky customers will be given the opportunity to ride around in a car that does their driving for them.

Sweden has just announced that they will play host to self-driving cars in the next couple of years. England, Japan, Singapore and the U.S. have already announced that they will host fleets of self-driving automobiles, but Sweden’s 100-car strong automotive army will be the first manufactured by Volvo. (Video)

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