Virtual delegation with successful workshops
Due to the pandemic, the 15th India-Sweden Innovations’ Accelerator (ISIA) delegation in November–December 2020 has been executed virtually. The first virtual delegation was carried out in May 2020 and the last one was completed in early December.
B2B meetings
During the virtual delegation Nov 23–Dec 4, in addition to the two workshop sessions, over 100 individual B2B meetings between Swedish companies and Indian industry representatives were organized by Business Sweden, the Swedish Energy Agency and CII Godrej Green Business Centre. These individual meetings were hosted over two weeks with the objective of business development, peer to peer learnings, potential partnerships and collaborations. Over 35 different collaboration opportunities were identified for the Swedish companies across 16 industrial sectors facilitating their entry and growth in India. Pawan Tahlani, Senior Project Manager at Business Sweden in New Delhi and Local Program Manager for the ISIA program since 2015, sums them up as very successful.
Workshops
On 24 November, under the theme Resource management and energy efficiency, ISIA hosted 40+ companies from India engaging with five Swedish companies; A Antennas, Altris, Altered, EcoLoo Group and Scandinavian Enviro Systems.
“At the end of the first workshop, we opened a poll, where the Indian representatives had the option to choose which Swedish companies they would like to have further meetings with. 16 Indian companies responded and so far it has resulted in 15 additional meetings and high hopes for further and in-depth collaborations and business”, says Pawan Tahlani, Senior Project Manager, Business Sweden.
On 2 December, under the theme of Process optimization and risk management, ISIA hosted 80+ companies from India engaging with five Swedish innovators; Comsys, Granuldisk, SaltX Technology, SurfCleaner and Modio. The virtual platform served as a catalyst to develop key areas within IoT, energy storage water conservation, circular economy, power quality and clean energy.
Increased awareness of Swedish cleantech with concrete collaborations
Swedish companies managed to develop strong connections with a wide range of Indian companies during the virtual delegation, which was very well received by both Indian and Swedish parties.
“With the virtual ISIA program we have had with the Indian companies recently as organized by Business Sweden, the Swedish Energy Agency and CII Godrej Green Business Centre, it has helped accelerate the discussions and developed leads with the local Indian companies without having to be there in person especially during the Covid-19 pandemic with lockdown being imposed and travel is restricted,” says Imad Agi – CEO, EcoLoo Group
Mr. Adam Dahlquist – CEO, Altris says “The ISIA program has managed to identify and connect Altris to key people in India to turn this opportunity into reality and after just a few months of work there are business activities heading towards fulfillment.”
Granuldisk is a member of the ISIA programme and now has opportunities for a pilot projects and new customer segments.
“The ISIA program has been a great success for us. It has given us a solid platform and strengthened our knowledge when entering the Indian market. At the same time, it has sped up our initiative by opening up doors as well as business possibilities in the form of B2B meetings with strong potential customers” says Johan Molander from Granuldisk.
Ludvig Lindström at the Swedish Energy Agency summarizes: “We are pleasantly surprized with the outcomes from the activities during 2020, despite the difficult circumstances. Even though the companies and stakeholder couldn’t meet in person there have been some really promising interactions. Altogether we are a strong team.”
What next?
During 2021 the accelerator has planned for follow-up support with an aim for a physical delegation in May–June 2021, subject to Covid conditions and applicable travel restrictions.