The Energy, Health and High Tech innovations: what does that mean concretely for the Arnhem Nijmegen region? General director Jan van Dellen of The Economic Board Regio Arnhem Nijmegen sees opportunities for sustainable energy, higher quality care with fewer people, with both businesses and residents reaping the benefits: "The knife cuts both ways. The technology makes it possible, now just the regulation..."
In The Economic Board Regio Arnhem Nijmegen, government, education and entrepreneurs find each other for economic renewal, also when it comes to energy transition and healthcare.
"The energy transition is very broad," stresses director Jan van Dellen. "We have the entire energy network in this region less than ten kilometres apart. From TenneT, which supplies high-voltage pylons, Alliander as energy supplier for the urban area of electricity, to Allego which supplies electric charging stations. Also, the healthcare sector is the largest employer in our region, with icons such as Radboudumc, Radboud University, Rijnstate, Byondis and many healthcare providers. By collaborating intensively here, healthcare innovations come home to us faster."
Connectr-Energy innovation
The innovative strength in the energy field is clustered in Connectr-Energy innovation. "In doing so, we deliberately chose to focus on three core activities: electricity as a connector; energy storage and sustainable propulsion." Connectr is a job generator on the one hand but also ensures the retention of existing jobs.
In June 2022, King Willem-Alexander opened ElaadNL' s European test charging centre and the Connectr Shared Office opened in November. It also opened the first Connectr Shared Facility's to be created in the region such as, for example, the Energy Demo Field where companies can safely demonstrate innovations.
Results of this investment in energy as a booster has brought a grant to our region for Nedstack of 21 million and a follow-up investment in Elestor of 30 million, both very active in hydrogen innovations.
Accelerate
The Economic Board forges links within the fragmented landscape of energy, healthcare and high-tech. The pooling of expertise and networks is hugely valuable in this regard, emphasises the managing director. “I have eighteen members from these three sectors on my Board, all of whom are committed to accelerating these developments,” notes Van Dellen.
Maarten Otto, CEO of energy supplier Alliander, is one such member of the Board. Jan van Iersel, chair of the Executive Board at Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences, also recognises that we are making great strides in terms of sustainability and circularity, with the university making a significant contribution through its advice on nitrogen, thereby creating scope to build homes in our region.
Mapping
"Of course you need the technology and the people for that but if the rules get in the way, then we just can't do anything at all," says Van Dellen. Those practical problems The Economic Board wants to identify and solve as many as possible. "Together with mayors and aldermen, we are looking at how we can advise the central government on the existing rules, which are really very old, to speed up the transitions. But also how to develop healthier lifestyles in neighbourhoods, where patients can be treated at home and not have to go to hospital every time."
Share energy
Another example is sharing company-generated energy with households in residential areas. "We are now looking at the possibility of a decentralised energy hub on a large industrial estate, where you can store excess capacity in a large battery and let it be shared with the surrounding neighbourhoods," says the managing director. "This not only makes a neighbourhood self-sufficient but even relieves the entire regional high-voltage grid." And here too, the interconnection opportunity translates into financial benefit: "Per household, it saves dozens of euros in energy bills if you can share power. However, here too, outdated regulations apply that need to be upgraded."
Labour market
But: also making a strategic contribution to the tight labour market. In 2022, The Economic Board, the Green Metropolitan Region (18 municipalities in the Arnhem Nijmegen region) and the Province of Gelderland have set up spearheads for: a Lifelong Development (LLO) for everyone, attracting and retaining talent and activating unused labour potential. With concrete targets: "By 2026, 10,000 employees will be further developed in technical and digital skills," says Van Dellen. And, he predicts, "In the period 2023-2026, 40,000 young adults will have been put in touch with innovative companies in the region."
Health and High Tech
Exploiting economic opportunities goes hand in hand with working on societal health topics and new key technologies, says the director. "In doing so, Highech provides the basis for realising breakthrough innovations. The focus is on technical developments that enable and accelerate the transition in care, to bring care to the neighbourhoods." This will make it possible to deliver appropriate care to residents' homes. Collaborating on a Growth Fund initiative, "That is the revolution of self-thinking molecular systems. also called RobotLab. This initiative by Wilhelm Huck, Radboud University, is coming to the Noviotech Campus." This involves 97 million euros.
All these initiatives increase quality in healthcare and reduce the number of people involved, he notes. "The latter is important because we are also short of many hands in the healthcare sector."
This article was also published by Regio in Bedrijf.
