A clusters exchange visit creates new business opportunities and confirms Estonia’s position in greentech

A cluster exchange visit held as part of GreenTech 2.0 brought foreign visitors yet again to Tehnopol. The GreenTech department at Tehnopol hosted visitors from Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden and Germany, and they all joined together and with local companies at the events of GreenTech Week.

The visit started with the GreenEST Summit on green innovation, which brought together experts from the public and private sectors, green technology companies, and investors from across Europe. The summit discussed how AI could be used to accelerate the green transition.

The party of visitors then went to the Fibenol factory, where they were shown the exciting sunburst pre-processing technology. This allowed them to see the revolutionary fractionation process in operation and take a deep dive into the practicalities of sustainable raw materials.

They attended the Smart City conference as part of NEXPO, the dedicated greentech exhibition, where several meetings had been arranged with a range of companies. NEXPO gave the visitors an extraordinary opportunity to see the latest technological breakthroughs that are ready to redesign production and promote sustainable growth. There was then a high-level reception in the evening held by Cleantech Europe at the Seaplane Harbour.

The visitors were very positive about the whole experience and several opportunities for cooperation have already been launched from it. New projects are being discussed with Latvian partners that have stirred great interest and show a clear commitment to continuing to work together in future. The Swedish delegation are planning a joint presentation at the CleanTech Forum in the USA, and there is a joint plan to research opportunities for cooperating on green activities in the African market. The Finns are planning to start a green roof project in Tallinn with smart bees, which is a good example of local and practical cooperation, and the Germans discussed the follow-up activities for another ongoing project.

The visit was important in many ways, says Ragmar Saksing

Head of GreenTech at Tehnopol Ragmar Saksing said that all these opportunities for cooperation demonstrate how strong our connections are with our partners and how we can create valuable business opportunities.

“The visit was important and beneficial in many ways, especially in connection with GreenTech Week. It gave us the chance to show off and feel proud about the achievements of our Estonian companies, as it is important for these to be recognised both domestically and internationally. There was a lot of concentrated togetherness this week.

“Such visits between clusters are extremely important, as business is built on communication between people. This visit gave us the chance to create and strengthen the ties with businesses and organisations in other countries that are vital for the success of international cooperation. These relationships do not just help with our current projects, but they lay the foundations for future endeavours. Green Week was one of the most important weeks of work for me in 2023”, he explained.

Summarising the event, he noted that the visit was an important step in strengthening Estonia’s position within greentech, and so helped the reputation of the country while also providing specific business opportunities. “The visitors made contacts that they can work together with, and several of them are planning to develop further towards Estonia. Our work has been successful and has created a firm foundation for doing business together in the future”, he concluded.

The GreenTech 2.0 project is funded under the European Union COSME programme (contract number 101037914). The website of the project: greentech-project.eu.