In Brief

Editor in Chief

Ole Frijs-Madsen
Director of Invest in Denmark, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Photo: Peter Clausen

Green front-runner

It is my pleasure as the new Editor in Chief to introduce you to this issue of Focus Denmark, which is devoted to reflecting a front-runner – Denmark, which hosts the UN Climate Change Conference COP15 this December. A country where government, citizens and businesses are committed to making an effort for a better climate.

Necessity is the mother of invention, goes the old saying, and it neatly describes what has motivated the Danes. The oil crisis in the early 1970s accelerated energy-saving initiatives in Danish businesses and in Danish homes. Some started building wind turbines, which at the time was considered rather eccentric. That attitude has radically changed – today Denmark is seen as a role model for its efforts to exploit renewable energy, most of which still comes from wind.

But there are many other ways to create renewable energy: solar cells, fuel cells, solar thermal energy, biomass and wave power. Denmark aims to be a front-runner also in developing these technologies, and many international technology companies have chosen to establish businesses here for the same reason. At the same time, Danish citizens are actively exploring the opportunities that exist to reduce CO2 emissions. Many Danish municipalities have ambitious energy plans, and are building wind farms, solar cell arrays and biogas plants.

Join us on a journey from when Denmark was 90 per cent dependent on oil till today where 20 per cent of Denmark’s electricity is generated from wind – on a journey through a country that has managed to create economic growth without increasing energy consumption.

Enjoy the read.

... either as a point of contact for business activity, or to add to your knowledge of what goes on in Denmark.

Denmark gets new PM as former PM heads for NATO

On Sunday 5th April, 44 year old Lars Løkke Rasmussen became the 41st Prime Minister of Denmark, taking over from Anders Fogh Rasmussen who is moving on to become the Secretary General of NATO.

Lars Løkke Rasmussen, previously the finance minister in the Liberal-Conservative coalition government, had been widely tipped to take over the premier’s mantle as rumours began circulating that the erstwhile PM was eyeing his next career move after three terms of office and seven years in the job.

A graduate in law and a member of the Danish parliament since 1994, Lars Løkke Rasmussen was the Interior and Health Minister in his predecessor’s first and second cabinets, where he spearheaded an ambitious programme of municipal reform. As Minister for Finance, he oversaw the implementation of major tax reform to reduce income tax and increase taxes on pollution. A robust and energetic politician, Lars Løkke Rasmussen is known for his pragmatic rather than ideological approach. He is married and has three children.

By a remarkable coincidence, Lars Løkke Rasmussen is the third Danish Prime Minister in succession to have the surname Rasmussen. Anders Fogh Rasmussen’s immediate predecessor was Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, who lead the government from 1993 to 2001.

Lars Løkke Rasmussen (right) gives his first speech as Prime Minister of Denmark. Behind him newly appointed Secretary General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Photo: Scanpix.

Denmark tops Stress Test on Competitiveness

DTU research team first to break ’terabit barrier’

Imagine downloading 80 full-length feature films in just one second. To transfer data at this speed necessitates breaking the “terabit barrier”, and that is exactly what the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) has achieved, reports DR Business.

One terabit per second – or 1 million million bits per second – is an awesome rate of data transfer. Previous attempts have been made by research labs around the world to break the terabit barrier, but none have succeeded. The best attempt hitherto was 640 gigabits per second, which only five laboratories on the planet were capable of reaching.

It is likely that DTU’s breakthrough, achieved using fibre optics and photon pulses, will have significant implications for the future of the internet, where data volumes are increasing at the rate of 60% annually.

Faster data transmission speeds also have environmental benefits, since less electricity consumption equates to less CO2. At present, the internet is responsible for 1% of the world’s entire CO2 emissions.

No freebies at COP15

The Danish government has decided that the DKK 4 million (EUR 537,000) that would otherwise be spent on producing conference packs for the COP15 meeting will instead be used to provide stipendiaries for climate-related studies at Danish universities, reports professional journal Ingeniøren (The Engineer). Conference packs – often including an assortment of free gifts
– are generally expected and routinely provided to delegates and media at major international gatherings. But given the enormous global threat that climate change poses, few of the 15,000 attending COP15 would begrudge the money being used to enable students from around the world to conduct climate research. Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology, Helge Sander, commented in a press release: “The Climate Stipendiary Fund highlights Denmark’s strong position in the climate-related research area and the opportunities to enhance one’s knowledge at Danish universities.”

Photo: Scanpix.

World’s largest offshore wind farm takes shape

When the UN Climate Change Conference COP15 takes place in Copenhagen in December this year, the world’s largest offshore wind farm – capable of supplying CO2-free electricity to 200,000 households – should be ready to come on stream. And fittingly it lies in Danish waters, 30 km out into the North Sea.

Denmark’s DONG Energy, together with wind turbine manufacturer Siemens and offshore installation experts A2SEA, are currently installing the 91 wind turbines comprising the Horns Rev 2 wind farm. Towering 115 metres above the waves, each turbine will produce 2.3 MW, making the combined output 209 MW. The wind farm covers an area of almost 35 km2, and will be the world’s first to have its own accommodation platform.

Denmark’s Minister for Climate and Energy, Connie Hedegaard, comments in a DONG Energy press release: “The establishment of Horns Rev 2 is an important step in the Danish government’s long-term ambition for Denmark to become independent of fossil fuels.”

Optimised route planning can slash CO2 emissions

Transport companies can reduce their CO2 emissions by as much as 25% by optimising their route planning, says Danish IT company Informi GIS, which specialises in geographic information systems (GIS).

Although most of the main transport companies in Denmark use transport optimisation systems, this is not the case for small and medium-sized transport companies, writes Ugens Erhverv (Business Weekly). Informi GIS sees considerable environmental benefits in these companies using such systems, since they account for a significant part of the Danish transport market.

Informi GIS told Ugens Erhverv: “In a specific example, we analysed and optimised the routes, and created a saving of 25% in driven kilometres. The company we helped delivers goods to customers throughout Zealand. Five drivers set off from a distribution centre on a daily basis and drive routes they plan themselves. The total length of the routes driven in a week is approx. 4,655 km. By analysing and optimising the routes, the same customers can be served by driving only 2,882 km.”

http://www.informi.dk

Denmark tops “Best Countries for Business 2009” ranking

For the fourth time, Forbes Magazine has rolled out its annual Best Countries for Business ranking. And for the second straight year Denmark has taken the No.1 spot, Forbes reports on its website.

All three Scandinavian countries feature in the Top 10 for 2009: Denmark (1), USA (2), Canada (3), Singapore (4), New Zealand (5), United Kingdom (6), Sweden (7), Australia (8), Hong Kong (9) and Norway (10).

 The 2009 ranking looks at business conditions in 127 economies, not to see who has the highest GDP or lowest unemployment but as Forbes puts it, “to quantify for entrepreneurs and investors the often-qualified information about dynamic economies and what they would consider desirable conditions for business”.

Forbes’ Best Countries for Business ranking recognises the importance of personal freedoms (“it’s hard to start a company or find talented employees under totalitarian regimes and military juntas”), and includes measures to quantify this such as free and fair elections, legal protection for investors, levels of corruption, stock market performance, intellectual property rights, promotion of free trade, levels of inflation, and taxation on income and investment.

Danish restaurant third best in the world

Photo: Scanpix

The Danish restaurant Noma has been ranked third best in the world in the 2009 Restaurant Magazine Top 50 after El Bulli in Spain and The Fat Duck in Great Britain. Noma rose 7 places compared to last year’s ranking and also took this year’s Chef’s Choice Award, which is given by the chefs from the 50 best restaurants. So, according to the best chefs of the world, Noma ranks No.1 in the world.

Noma has two stars in the Michelin Guide. The cuisine of Noma is Nordic/ Scandinavian; the restaurant’s founders René Redzepi and Claus Meyer have attempted to redefine this Nordic cuisine. Noma is situated in Christianshavn in Copenhagen harbour.