ERFURT – Thuringia and southern Sweden share many connections – especially when it comes to mutual expertise in future technologies. These include, above all, modern mobility and battery technology, renewable energies, and GreenTech – all future-oriented fields in which Thuringia possesses strong expertise and potential. A recent delegation trip to the Öresund region from November 7th to 12th of last year demonstrated the numerous opportunities for cooperation and business relationships with partners from the innovation region of southern Sweden. The Contact made during this trip were so vibrant and promising that they will be further developed during a return visit by a delegation from southern Sweden this Wednesday, February 16th, and Thursday, February 17th. Coordinated by the GreenTech Village (GTV) in Lund (southern Sweden), representatives from three southern Swedish companies and networks will visit the Free State of Thuringia and learn about local stakeholders and services through a diverse program. GTV is a business unit of the investor cluster Cleantech Scandinavia; its tasks include bringing together partners for international cooperation in the areas of sustainable innovation, industry and finance.
“It is very gratifying that our delegation trip last autumn has so quickly led to a further intensification of our personal relations,” said LEG Managing Director Andreas Krey ahead of the visit. The trip, led by Minister of Economic Affairs Wolfgang Tiefensee, was organized by the LEG team “Thuringia International.” “In the coming days, we will be highlighting opportunities for our partners in southern Sweden to collaborate with Thuringian entrepreneurs and researchers. This will open up numerous opportunities for companies and research institutions in the Free State of Thuringia to establish forward-looking collaborations and business relationships.”
Toby Hörnlein, manager of the GTV coordinator, emphasizes the mutual benefits of the upcoming visit: “Internationalization is a fundamental building block of our core business. The fastest possible growth of critically needed innovations in the fight against climate change is only feasible and makes sense globally. National borders are by no means a deterrent for us, but definitely a positive incentive for cooperation, and we are eager to continue and expand our cooperation with existing and new partners in Thuringia.”
Part of the program includes meetings with stakeholders who are driving economic development and (sustainable) technology in Thuringia at the state level. These visits include stops at LEG Thüringen, its subsidiary the Thuringian Energy and GreenTech Agency (ThEGA), the Thuringian Foundation for Technology, Innovation and Research (STIFT), and the "smood® - smart neighbourhood" cluster, which is part of the Thuringian Renewable Energy Network (ThEEN eV). Another networking opportunity is provided Contact e to connect with the Erfurter Kreuz e.V. initiative, the Thuringian Digital Agency, the Thuringian Logistics Network eV, and the Bauhaus Mobility Lab project. The focus here is on providing information about the services offered by the Free State of Thuringia and the individual associations and agencies, as well as offering opportunities for exchange. The focus will also be on visits to Thuringian innovation leaders in the fields of business and research: These include the Thuringian Innovation Center for Mobility (ThIMo), located at the Ilmenau University of Technology, an internationally renowned research center for mobility, primarily active in the five future-oriented fields of drive technology, vehicle technology, radio and information technology, lightweight construction, power electronics, and functional integration. The Ilmenau University of Technology will also present innovative technologies in the areas of energy storage and energy distribution systems. Another stop on the three-day trip is the Battery Innovation and Technology Center (BITC) at the "Erfurter Kreuz" industrial site, which, as a branch of the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS), develops high-tech solutions for the production and quality assurance of battery cells. The trip concludes on Thursday afternoon with an excursion to the Japanese automotive supplier IHI Charging Systems International GmbH, which manufactures state-of-the-art turbochargers for the European automotive industry in Arnstadt.
For the Scandinavian side, the upcoming visit is intended to be just the first, small step. Plans are currently underway for a much larger delegation trip with various partners, companies, and researchers from across the Öresund region. This delegation is scheduled to visit Thuringia at the end of May.
More information at www.thueringen-international.de
