Borlänge is a city of about 40 000 inhabitants and has traditionally been characterized as a typical industrial city with primarily steel and paper industries. The city has a well-functioning sewage system, waste management with more than 85 percent recycling and a well-developed district heating system with heat from renewable energy and waste heat.
Collaboration between society’s actors
There are several large businesses in Borlänge active within transport and manufacturing. There are big export companies such as SSAB, a sheet metal producer and Stora Enso paper, as well as the head offices for The Swedish Road Administration and The Swedish Rail Administration. Politically there is a strong vision for sustainability and a number of environmental measures have been carried out through cooperation between the municipality and the trade industry.
Borlänge is also home to the university Högskolan Dalarna, specializing in technical and administrative studies as well as economics and social sciences. University students travel abroad for pre-studies within e.g. cleantech, financed by Sida (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency) and other support organizations.
The plants in cooperation
The industries and municipality are parts of a common energy system, where waste heat is divided for maximum usage. The main actors are Borlänge Energi who runs the municipal district heating network and works to deliver renewable energy as well as utilize waste products, SSAB Tunnplåt and Stora Enso Kvarnsveden. The industries have advanced systems for handling waste heat and steam for producing electricity as well as advanced treatment equipment for both air and water.
By using waste heat and biofuels for heating via the district heating network, approximately 115,000 metric tons less carbon dioxides are emitted each year compared to heat produced from burning of oil.
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