Norra Scen in Visby: "Sweden is not built for rapid growth"
With Norra Scen in Almedalen, Norrbotten received three days of meetings, dialogue and debate. Almost a hundred voices were heard from the stage: members of parliament, cultural creators, municipal politicians, debaters, business leaders, researchers and heads of government agencies.
Together they shared their knowledge, experiences, perspectives, ideas and concerns. They discussed, among other things, the housing shortage, the importance of a mining strategy, railway expansion, the importance of culture in society, industrial restructuring and risk allocation between state and municipality.
Here is a selection of voices from some of the seminars at Norra Scen.
The industry's transformation is happening now
– We have had a shift from environment and climate to defense, and a trade war that also changes the playing field. But climate change will not stop. That issue will come back strongly, but I am afraid that it will first be much more unpleasant than it is now, said Jan Moström, CEO of LKAB.
– It's a hurry now and Sweden is not built for rapid growth. All these ways of working that we have created over decades. Now we can't work like that because it takes too long. The authorities must start measuring time. It's not like companies wouldn't relate to time in their calculations, said Kristina Alvendal, Acceleration Office.
– On the continent, the steel industry receives huge government subsidies. Here we don't want that, but then the state must ensure infrastructure, electricity production and electricity supply. We need government funds for research, development and innovation, said Erik Pedersen, SSAB.
Do you want to hear more? Watch the seminar The industrial transformation is happening now
The state and the municipalities – who should take the risk?
– The municipalities are putting in a lot of work on the green transition, but it is the state that takes the revenue. 80-90 percent of the tax revenue from companies goes to the state, while it is the municipalities that have to put in a lot of the resources. That is not reasonable, said Annika Wallenskog, former chief economist at SKR.
Annika Wallenskog, now a senior advisor at Gullers Grupp, also highlighted that the state has halved its debt while the municipalities have doubled theirs during the same period.
– The green transition will generate 100 billion kronor in export revenues and increased GDP. There are incentives for the state to invest, but they are not doing so. Instead, we have to work with short-term decisions and put out fires instead of working on development, said Johannes Sundelin (S), chairman of the regional development committee in the Norrbotten Region.
– What kind of story are we telling about what is happening? We are unstable, because all it takes is a shake at Northvolt and the whole narrative about the green transition falls, said Elisabeth Backteman, DG, Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth.
The above quote comes from the roundtable discussion The State and the Municipalities - Who Should Take the Risk, which is not available as a recording.
The most important railway in the Nordic region
– The Arctic Circle is becoming more and more important from a strategic perspective, linked to Russian interests and commerce. This makes the entire Malmbane area an area for competition from many perspectives. Not just for the natural resources, the ore and the precious metals, said Jonny Lindfors, Chief of Army Staff, Swedish Armed Forces.
Jonny Lindfors, Army Chief, gave a picture of the importance of the Ore Line from a geopolitical perspective.
– The seminar is called the Nordic region's most important railway, but I mean it is Europe's most important railway. Europe's Suez Canal, which enables Sweden's welfare. It is also food. We have the tourism industry and passenger traffic and the NATO perspective, said Linda Lundberg-Nilsson, CEO, Norrbotten Chamber of Commerce.
– Investing in preparedness is investing for something that hopefully never happens, but here we need to invest for something that has extremely large industrial values, said Niklas Johansson, Director Public Affairs, LKAB.
– No one chooses what they vote for based on the railway in Norrbotten. Then it is more fun to add a ROT deduction so people can build a new pool. Defense is likely to be a big political election issue, if you manage to angle it as if we don't have to embarrass ourselves in front of NATO, then you can get more fire in the ass, said Susanna Kierkegaard, editorial writer for Aftonbladet.
Want to hear more? See seminar The most important railway in the Nordic region
Industry is investing 573 billion in northern and central Sweden – where is the railway? What is the state doing?
– When we make a decision on the next national plan, we will look at socio-economic profitability. The competitiveness of the industry is another key aspect. Roads, building wholes, that is not always captured in calculations. The total defence perspective is not captured at all in normal calculations, but the Swedish Transport Administration will also assess that in its proposal for a new plan, said Johan Davidson (KD), State Secretary, Ministry of Rural Affairs and Infrastructure.
– We are doing everything we can to get the Bothnian Corridor ready and are trying to make these projects go as quickly and smoothly as possible. Now we are focusing on the planning and continuation of the Norrbothniabanan. These are not just any projects in northern Sweden, they are very important for stimulating and developing the green transition, said Roberto Maiorana, Director General, Swedish Transport Administration.
Roberto Maiorana on stage with panelists Johan Davidson, Ulrika Heie, Maria Stockhaus and Carl Bergkvist.
– We need to get started with the larger investments. We need more capacity and it's urgent. We're spending a lot of money on plans: the Swedish Transport Administration, the regions, the municipalities are all working on plans. It should be ready to start building soon, said Ulrika Heie (C), Chair of the Riksdag's Transport Committee.
– How can we finance railway projects in new ways, how can we get faster implementation and more infrastructure for the money? These are the questions for the investigation to be presented in December. It will be an important part when the government establishes the national plan, said Maria Stockhaus (M), member, Riksdag's Transport Committee.
Want to hear more? Watch the seminarIndustry is investing 573 billion in northern and central Sweden - where is the railway?
Culture – the key to vibrant, attractive and sustainable communities
– There is a tendency to see culture as some kind of sprinkle on top. In municipal administration it is lumped together as “culture and leisure”. It is not leisure, it is something fundamental in the human being, it is not something that is added on at the end. Health care, education, care are part of welfare, but culture should be seen as equally fundamental. Not something that you can both have and lose, said Lars Strannegård, President of the Stockholm School of Economics.
– What makes me continue, that I seek something I can't live on? It's not a choice, it's like a calling. I constantly feel that you have to defend the lull. That you need to justify it in some way so that everything can be measured, and that can't be done with culture. What impact it has on people, how it unites in polarized times, said Anna-Sofia Monroy, artist and cultural worker.
Anna-Sofia Monroy, artist and former Rubus Arcticus fellow, contributed with a cultural worker's perspective on the social issue.
– You should have a state, regional and municipal foundation for culture, it is important but we need to broaden it. We have not created the conditions for supplementary financing, it is easier to sponsor a football team than to pay for the Royal Opera. It must be a feather in the cap to put money on the opera, so that the pie in the total becomes bigger, said Malin Danielsson (L), Member of Parliament and Vice Chair of the Culture Committee.
– We need to expand the foundation, it is not enough for private industry to sponsor. We need to have people in the rehearsal rooms if someone is to be able to stand on the big stages later. We need to increase the basic funding today if culture is to get where we want it to be later, said Oscar Lindster, regional councilor, Region Gotland (S).
Residential construction that determines the industrial transition – what is needed to build the Norrbotten of the future?
– Sweden is not built to get housing and attractive places quickly. The average time for a detailed plan for housing is five years. A lot of what is happening in Swedish business today was not known and started if we look back five years ago, said Kristina Alvendal, Industry Coordinator, Acceleration Office.
– The government is making contributions to the Norrlandsfonden to get housing construction started, by ensuring that the Norrlandsfonden has money to be able to provide top-quality loans. From 1 January 2026, credit guarantees of up to 90 percent will be available for housing construction in northern Sweden. These are incredible investments that are being made now, and rightly so - the state must take its responsibility, said Mattias Karlsson (M), Member of Parliament and group leader for the Moderate Party.
Mattias Karlsson emphasized that solutions to stimulate housing construction are underway.
– The construction market is not working. Most recently, we had 76 apartments that Kirunabostäder was going to build. A bid was received. The price was so high that a three-room apartment would cost 18.000 kronor a month. We have far too few players, and at the same time, staff in the construction industry in southern Sweden, which is experiencing a huge construction crisis, are being laid off. If the market had worked, people would have turned to northern Sweden. Here we will have a boom for another 20-30 years, said Mats Taaveniku (S), municipal councilor, Kiruna municipality.
Could the mines of Norrbotten and Sweden be crucial for the future of Europe?
– We know that we need to be more independent. To ensure our strategic autonomy, we need to increase our access to critical minerals. And Sweden is one of the countries that has many of them, said Annika Wäppling Korzinek, Head of the European Commission Representation in Sweden.
– It is important to ensure some form of return to secure what happens in the municipalities, and the costs they incur for society to function. There is another aspect: to get some form of acceptance from those who live and work in these municipalities. There is a legacy that the profits have always disappeared from here. We mentioned Canada and Australia earlier today, where they have solved it in different ways, said Anders Öberg (S), Chairman of the Regional Board, Norrbotten Region.
Anders Öberg emphasized that the natural resources in Norrbotten are of both national and European interest – and it is therefore justified to support the municipalities in everything that is required if they are to be extracted.
– The Swedish mining industry is competitive but has high labor costs and higher costs for environmental protection. So we are walking a fine line in terms of what we can handle. So how do we deal with recycling? The industry as a whole is positive about it but we have to consider competitiveness, said Maria Sunér, CEO, Svemin.
– It is important that we maintain high ESG* standards, because citizens, consumers and industry demand it. Many large manufacturers want critical minerals that have been produced according to the highest environmental and social standards. China’s standards are substandard, and they do not follow market rules. So we cannot compete with China on price. But we can compete with China on quality and high ESG standards. That is our selling point, said Jason LaTorre, Canadian Ambassador to Sweden.
*ESG stands for "environmental, social and governance", that is, environment, social responsibility and corporate governance.
Other recorded seminars:
Future space research – a key to societal development and strengthened security
How do we manage and mitigate land conflicts as the industry shifts?
Real transformation – this is how we can take a holistic approach to infrastructure development in northern Sweden
The energy transition and Sweden's competitiveness
Compiled by: Sara Stylbäck Vesa
Photos: Freidon Mobaraki