SWEDEN - ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE - ZEV RUN™ 

International electric car endurance challenges, Europe: France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Norway .......

Map of the suggested route for the Swedish Cannonball International ZEV Run. Your route may vary from that shown, for example to take in fast charge locations, and so long as the start and finish lines are the same, that is not a problem. 

Sweden is keen on implementing sustainable policies but so far, as with other Scandinavian countries they have given little thought to ways of accelerating such transition, leaving it to industry to take the hint from policies that are not enforceable. 

What is clear is that traditional generating companies are being overtaken by offshore concerns. This turn of events may eventually see coal and other energy producers going to the wall, for their refusal to change. Renewable resources like wind and solar electricity that will ultimately herald in a sustainable green economy, will need a system for providing energy for transport that is way more efficient than fast charging.

Sweden is the seventh-richest country in the world in terms of GDP (gross domestic product) per capita and a high standard of living is experienced by its citizens. Sweden is an export-oriented mixed economy. Timber, hydropower and iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy with a heavy emphasis on foreign trade. Sweden's engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and exports, while telecommunications, the automotive industry and the pharmaceutical industries are also of great importance. Sweden is the ninth-largest arms exporter in the world. Agriculture accounts for 2% of GDP and employment. The country ranks among the highest for telephone and Internet access penetration.

PRIME MINISTER Kjell Stefan Löfven (born 21 July 1957) is a Swedish politician who has been Prime Minister of Sweden since 3 October 2014. He is also Leader of the Social Democratic Party since 2012. He had worked as a welder before becoming an active trade unionist and rising to lead the powerful IF Metall from 2006 to 2012. Löfven led the Social Democratic Party to election victory in the September 2014 election by carrying 31 percent of the vote. Löfven announced on election night that he would form a government with the Green Party. After a budget defeat the PM called a news conference, telling reporters that new elections would enable voters to "make a choice in the face of this new political landscape". Under the constitution he cannot officially call a national poll until 29 December 2014.

ENERGY SUPPLIERS

Sweden's energy market is largely privatised. The Nordic energy market is one of the first liberalised energy markets in Europe and it is traded in NASDAQ OMX Commodities Europe and Nord Pool Spot. In 2006, out of a total electricity production of 139 TWh, electricity from hydropower accounted for 61 TWh (44%), and nuclear power delivered 65 TWh (47%). At the same time, the use of biofuels, peat etc. produced 13 TWh (9%) of electricity, while wind power produced 1 TWh (1%). Sweden was a net importer of electricity by a margin of 6 TWh. Biomass is mainly used to produce heat for district heating and central heating and industry processes.

The 1973 oil crisis strengthened Sweden's commitment to decrease dependence on imported fossil fuels. Since then, electricity has been generated mostly from hydropower and nuclear power. The use of nuclear power has been limited, however. Among other things, the accident of Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station (United States) prompted the Riksdag to ban new nuclear plants, thank heavens. In March 2005, an opinion poll showed that 83% supported maintaining or increasing nuclear power. Politicians have made announcements about oil phase-out in Sweden, decrease of nuclear power, and multi-billion dollar investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The country has for many years pursued a strategy of indirect taxation as an instrument of environmental policy, including energy taxes in general and carbon dioxide taxes in particular.

TRANSPORT

Sweden has 162,707 km (101,101 mi) of paved road and 1,428 km (887 mi) of expressways. Motorways run through Sweden, Denmark and over the Öresund Bridge to Stockholm, Gothenburg, Uppsala and Uddevalla. The system of motorways is still under construction and a new motorway from Uppsala to Gävle was finished on 17 October 2007. Sweden had left-hand traffic (Vänstertrafik in Swedish) from approximately 1736 and continued to do so well into the 20th century.

The Stockholm metro is the only subway system in Sweden and serves the city of Stockholm via 100 stations. The rail transport market is privatised, but while there are many privately owned enterprises, many operators are still owned by state. The counties have financing, ticket and marketing responsibility for local trains. For other trains the operators handle tickets and marketing themselves. Operators include SJ, Veolia Transport, DSB, Green Cargo, Tågkompaniet and Inlandsbanan. Most of the railways are owned and operated by Trafikverket.

The largest airports include Stockholm-Arlanda Airport (16.1 million passengers in 2009) 40 km (25 mi) north of Stockholm, Gothenburg-Landvetter Airport (4.3 million passengers in 2008), and Stockholm-Skavsta Airport (2.0 million passengers). Sweden hosts the two largest port companies in Scandinavia, Port of Göteborg AB (Gothenburg) and the transnational company Copenhagen Malmö Port AB.

In 1963 the Riksdag passed legislation ordering a switch from left to right-hand traffic. The changeover took place on a Sunday morning at 5am on September 3, 1967, which was known in Swedish as Dagen H (H-Day), the 'H' standing for Högertrafik or right-hand traffic.

Since Swedish cars were left-hand drive, experts had suggested that changing to driving on the right would reduce accidents, because drivers would have a better view of the road ahead. The records show that fatal car-to-car and car-to-pedestrian accidents did drop sharply as a result. This was likely due to drivers initially being more careful and because of the initially very low speed limits. Accident rates soon returned to nearly the same as earlier.

Motorways run through Sweden, Denmark and over the Öresund Bridge to Stockholm, Gothenburg, Uppsala and Uddevalla. The system of motorways is still being extended. The longest continuous motorways are Värnamo-Gävle (E4; 585 km) and Rabbalshede-Vellinge (E6; 412 km; will by 2013 be extended so the motorway between Trelleborg and Oslo in Norway will be completed). Google maps shows roadworks across the entire length of the country.

KING OF SWEDEN Carl XVI Gustaf (full name: Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus, born 30 April 1946) is the reigning King of Sweden. On 15 September 1973, he succeeded his grandfather Gustaf VI Adolf. He is the only son of Prince Gustaf Adolf, Duke of Västerbotten, and Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The King's heir apparent, upon passage on 1 January 1980 of a new law establishing absolute primogeniture (the first such law passed in European history), is Crown Princess Victoria, the eldest child of the King and his wife, Queen Silvia. The King does not normally look so stern.

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