Green Transition

The Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs is ready to collaborate with local stakeholders to establish a large new business area on Lolland, in connection with the tunnel element factory in Rødbyhavn, which the Danish Parliament has decided can continue production after the completion of the Fehmarn project.

This was affirmed by Morten Bødskov, Minister of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs during a visit to the Fehmarn project on November 11th. The purpose of the visit was to discuss how to realize the area’s significant potential by establishing a business park on the land behind the tunnel element factory, an area that has already attracted national and international interest.

The Municipality of Lolland has been working on plans for a business area for some time, which, according to the municipality, could become a center for Denmark’s green transition.

Unique Opportunity for Local Jobs
The Fehmarn Belt Tunnel will, in the future, connect Denmark and Germany when it is completed, and the project simultaneously has the potential to form a strong foundation for future local business development and the opportunity to create new jobs, the Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs states in a press release, and Minister of Business Morten Bødskov comments:

“When the Fehmarn Tunnel is completed, it could become a real game-changer for the local business community, both in Rødby and beyond. It’s a unique opportunity to create new local jobs, and we must do everything we can to seize it. The race for the jobs of the future is already on, and if we do not stay alert, we risk watching tomorrow's jobs pass Denmark by. That’s why we simply cannot afford to stand idle when we have the opportunity to create favourable conditions for businesses here on Lolland and why, I am very pleased that the Lolland Municipality is working on a new business park in the area.”

Lolland as a Dynamic Growth Center
In relation to with the meeting between the MinistryIndustry, Business and Financial Affairs, the municipality, and other stakeholders, Mayor Holger Schou Rasmussen states:

“The Fehmarn connection is a historic opportunity that is already in the process of transforming Lolland into a dynamic growth center. It is creating thousands of jobs and will, in the future, attract even more companies, which will strengthen both our local and regional economy. At the same time, the connection will improve our accessibility to the rest of Europe, making Lolland more attractive for both tourism and business. In this context, we are working to develop a new business park close to the motorway and the upcoming tunnel, which will create optimal conditions for new businesses. All this is happening while we preserve and protect our unique nature and environment.”

The tunnel element factory, the construction harbour, and the adjacent land area have huge potential, according to Lolland Municipality. International investors are ready.

The Danish Parliament's decision to make the tunnel element factory in Rødbyhavn permanent opens up perspectives that could have a decisive impact on the development, not only in Eastern Denmark but throughout the entire country, says Lolland Municipality.
“Rødbyhavn could become the center of Denmark's green transition,” says Thomas Knudsen, municipal director of Lolland Municipality.
At the conference "Fehmarn Green Build & Construction Challenge" on October 10th at Engestofte Manor near Maribo, Thomas Knudsen outlined a scenario where the tunnel element factory, the associated construction harbour, and it´s upland, are developed into a gigantic industrial business district with companies that not only drive the Danish green transition but also attract foreign projects and investors.

The future dream scenario
Lolland Municipality has been working for some time on plans for this future dream scenario, which is still in a clarification phase but that currently is already attracting international interest.
Municipal Director Thomas Knudsen, along with several local business development actors, recently participated in the international investor fair Expo Real in Munich, where he met investors who not only are aware the future opportunities in Lolland, but who are also ready to invest.
“We could have sold the commercial areas already last Monday,” remarked Thomas Knudsen.

The opportunities are unique
The future scenario is still a dream, but Thomas Knudsen and Lolland Municipality believe that the potential is great and that the opportunities are unique, not only for Denmark, but also in a European perspective.
“The area around Rødbyhavn is one of the few, if not the only place, where motorway, railway, and harbour meet, where no city stands in the way of expansion, but instead, there is a large upland area that can be utilized,” says Thomas Knudsen.
If something similar were to be developed elsewhere, the approvals, etc., would take at least 20 years.
“On Lolland, we have the locations, and only an approved local plan is needed to realize the plans,” says Thomas Knudsen, who points out that expansion of offshore wind needs to increase 100-fold by 2032. A significant part of the necessary production of elements for the wind turbine industry can take place on Lolland, and this, along with other green initiatives, could create an international hub for productions based on renewable energy.

Erhvervsfyrtårn Femern invites to the Fehmarn Link Innovation Conference on 7^th March

The business community is facing increasing challenges as a consequence of the green transition.

Therefore, Erhvervsfyrtårn Femern aims to increase innovation in Danish companies and create a Danish position of strength within sustainable construction and mega infrastructure.

With a conference on 7th March at Engestofte Gods on Lolland, the partners behind the Business Lighthouse will focus on sustainable construction and mega infrastructure, including new materials, monitoring and automation, new technology and optimised construction processes.

"Erhvervsfyrtårnet's activities are based on innovative collaborations between research and educational institutions, clients, consortia and companies. The Fehmarn Link Innovation Conference wants to focus on how innovation of materials, methods and processes is an important part of the journey towards a sustainable building and construction industry," says Christina Melvang, CEO, We Build Denmark.

New knowledge, workshops and innovative products
Participants in the Fehmarn Link Innovation Conference are presented with, among other things:

- How Sund & Bælt works with innovation in relation to future Danish infrastructure projects.

- How the major contractors view the "green profile of companies" as a crucial competitive parameter.

- How companies work with the green transition

In addition, there will be the opportunity to participate in workshops focusing on innovative methods, materials and processes, visit an exhibition with new innovative products and methods and try out the latest technologies in the "Femern Lab".

An important competitive parameter
"Green transition is a shared responsibility, and the "green profile" of companies is and will increasingly become an important competitive parameter for small and medium-sized companies in the building and construction industry. Therefore, it is important that there is a common understanding of what this means throughout the construction industry's "food chain" from the start. "Green" is talked about everywhere in society - but many of us are not fully aware of what it really means or how we actually work to make the transition. This is what we want to focus on when we invite you to the Fehmarn Link Innovation Conference," says Stig Rømer Winther, CEO of Femern Belt Development.

Further information and registration for the conference
Fehmarn Link Innovation Conference 

Facts:

The conference
The conference, which will be held in English, takes place at Engestofte Gods, Søvej 10, 4930 Maribo on 7 March 2024 at 11-17 with the opportunity to attend a networking dinner from 18:00 - 20:30.  

The partners
The partners behind Erhvervsfyrtårn Femern:
DTU, Danish Technological Institute, Odense Robotics, We Build Denmark, Zealand, Roskilde  

Conference partners
Project "Fehmarn Belt Innovation" - co-financed by Interreg Deutschland-Denmark, Sund & Bælt og Fehmarn Link Contractors

Business Lighthouse Fehmarn is co-financed by the EU and Danmarks Erhvervsfremmebestyrelse.