“Vatten2025 is an effective way for municipalities to keep an eye on what is going on in the world around them”

The increased security threat landscape and considerable investment needs are putting the entire water and wastewater sector, not least in Sweden’s municipalities, under increasing pressure.

“We are facing major challenges that we can only solve together,” said John Skantze, chairman of Vattenindustrin – the association of Swedish water industries.

He hopes for a large turnout at the industry-driven meeting place Vatten2025, which will be held on 21–23 October next year at the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre.

This multi-faceted event – a trade exhibition with a large stage programme, a conference, arenas for innovation, and activities – was held for the first time last year. It was completely sold out with 232 exhibitors and almost 6,000 visitors.

“An extremely successful start,” says John Skantze, who has since May been the new chairman of Vattenindustrin and is a co-organiser of Vatten2025.

“We have high hopes for next year. As we will have even more space at our disposal, we can sharpen the concept further and hope that even more people will discover how effective it is to get an overview of the situation around them and build a basis for future decisions at a meeting place like Vatten2025.”

External threats are increasing

A growing challenge in the sector, and one that will also be a hot topic at Vatten2025, is threats and security.

“It is partly to do with cyber security. External threats, data breaches and hybrid warfare, along with how to manage water and wastewater in autonomous systems, are all areas of concern,” John says.

“A second focus area is the physical security of various water projects, which are considered protected objects. Things tend to get more complex and cumbersome when both materials and personnel have to be security classified. We need to develop new solutions to meet the requirements, and find new ways to work cost-effectively.”

There have been major changes in recent years, he explains:

“In the past, it was easy to send a drawing by email. This is no longer possible. New demands are now being imposed in terms of transferring data, requiring the likes of high-security cloud solutions.”

A gap that needs to be addressed

Investment needs in the water and wastewater network remain a hot topic, and John Skantze believes there is a real need to discuss this at Vatten2025:

“Nothing has really happened here, despite water and wastewater tariff having been increased by an average of 12 per cent. That increase has been eaten up by inflation and higher interest rates.”

A report from Svenskt Vatten that attracted a lot of attention shows that municipalities will need to invest up to SEK 30 billion a year over the next 20 years. But this is currently proving to be out of reach, with a shortfall of almost SEK 10 billion a year.

“There is an investment and maintenance gap that needs to be addressed in some way. No new money has been allocated to municipalities, despite the need to develop water supply networks and waterworks, and despite the increased costs of digitalisation, which will eventually lead to greater efficiency.”

Extending a hand

Vattenindustrin invites you to its ‘Living Room’ on the exhibition floor, where, as last year, there will be space for mingling and networking. In 2025, the room will be complemented by a lounge area, where people can sit down and have discussions in peace and quiet.

John Skantze is particularly looking forward to meeting more municipal representatives and representatives of the customer organisation Svenskt Vatten at Vatten2025.

“I would like to extend a hand to decision-makers in all municipalities, not least water and wastewater managers and the chairs of water and wastewater boards. We would like to meet with them all at Vatten2025,” he says.

“Meeting, discussing and sharing experiences is the best way to move forward and find solutions to these pivotal issues.”

Vattenindustrin, along with the Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre, is organising Vatten2025: Sweden’s largest meeting place for the water and wastewater industry and an important event for exploring the challenges of both today and tomorrow. The Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre in Gothenburg will be hosting this inspiring meeting place on 21–23 October 2025, and we look forward to seeing you there! 

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT VATTEN2025