A national innovation platform is established in Norrbotten

Luleå The national innovation platform CLOSER is also establishing itself in Norrbotten. 

The regional host organisation will be LTU Business with Region Norrbotten as a partner. The aim is to support the development of sustainable heavy transport and logistics solutions for road, rail and maritime transport.

"When CLOSER now strengthens its presence in northern Sweden, it is together with LTU Business. This establishment is not just a regional matter but also a national and international one", says Bo Hallams, Chairman of the Board of CLOSER.

Work will start shortly to bring together representatives of actors driving industrial investment to see what challenges the transport system faces. The aim is for this to lead to concrete results through joint investments that create value for both individual stakeholders and for a sustainable and efficient transport system.

- Sustainable steel production, ore mining and other industries also involve exports from northern Sweden to the rest of the world, and it is important to have a strong initiative in which public-private cooperation can help to speed up the transition. We look forward to working with CLOSER to bring together actors from research, industry and the public sector to accelerate the development and implementation of new transport and logistics solutions, says Gry Holmgren Hafskjold, CEO of LTU Business.

- New transhipment terminals and port logistics, electrification, automation and hydrogen-based e-fuels will need to be tested and deployed on a large scale. We welcome that CLOSER is also established in Norrbotten and enables us to gear up the development that is already underway, says Janus Brandin, Regional Development Director Region Norrbotten.

CLOSER consists of some 60 partners and is a neutral collaboration platform, knowledge hub and project workshop for transport efficiency and logistics. CLOSERs main funders are Trafikverket, Vinnova and Västra Götaland Region. CLOSER operates at Lindholmen Science Park with offices in Gothenburg and Stockholm.

Lennart Håkansson

editor@northswedenbusiness.com