To succeed with the green transition, industry must be electrified in a way that maximises the use of renewable energy without putting excessive strain on the public electricity grid. Achieving this also requires a fundamental rethinking of the energy system: sector integration must be at the core, and energy must be stored, converted, and used with minimal waste.

GreenLab is a green industrial park where industry is directly connected to renewable energy and where companies share their excess resources with each other. We accelerate the green transition by optimising the way renewable energy is generated, stored, and used in energy-intensive industrial processes. GreenLab is a public-private partnership between Norlys, Skive Municipality, Spar Vest Fonden, and Klimafonden. In 2021, the Danish government designated GreenLab as an official regulatory test zone granting GreenLab the opportunity to try new circular business models and direct connections between renewable energy and industry.

GreenLab operates its own microgrid, which ensures that the public electricity grid is not burdened by capacity challenges when green energy is produced and distributed to companies on-site. This is possible because GreenLab functions as energy producer, distributor, balancing authority, and storage operator. We see a big potential in Power-to-Heat technologies and have partnered with several heat battery providers to explore large-scale storage solutions.

Our ambition is to demonstrate a new, integrated approach to the energy system, and we do this through direct connection of industrial production and renewable energy, large-scale testing of new technologies, and mission-driven research. Ultimately, our goal is to export GreenLab’s model of integration and public-private collaboration to the rest of the world.

GreenLab welcomes several international delegations every year, and we are always happy to provide a guided tour of the site and share our knowledge and experience.

GreenLab demonstrates that it is possible to connect renewable energy to industrial production without putting pressure on the public electricity grid. We also show how one company’s waste can become another company’s resource – thereby reducing fossil fuel use in the industrial sector. Our industrial park serves as a living lab for new green technologies, providing a full-scale environment for testing and accelerating innovation in the green transition.

GreenLab and its site partners have created local green growth, generated more than 100 jobs and attracted over 3 billion in investments.

In August 2023, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation published a report on guidelines for developing green industrial hydrogen clusters. GreenLab is a contributor and is highlighted by the UN as a best-practice example.

Read more about the report here