At the end of October we hosted our very first Ento Summit, a conference dedicated to collaboration and insight into the world of energy optimisation and climate technology in public and commercial building portfolios. 

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40 energy professionals from diverse sectors – ranging from commercial real estate to private and public building owners and energy consultancy – came together in Aarhus to forge connections and learn from each other’s successes and failures. The event exemplified the industry's commitment to fostering innovation and meaningful change.

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How does one invest 2.4 billion DKK in climate technology? 

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As the first speaker of the day, Salling Group’s Energy Manager, Martin Kortegaard, walked the audience through the retailer’s climate strategy and how they are aiming to reach their ambitious goals by investing in energy technology. With the Group not only operating stores in Denmark, but also in neighbouring Germany and Poland, the challenges differ depending on the country and the respective legislation, level of digitalisation, and how energy is generated.

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Next, Kim Revald, Senior Sustainability Manager at Velliv Ejendomme, spoke about how the new EU laws are affecting investment properties. Specifically, it was discussed how the CSRD directive drives a much larger focus on sustainability in the Commercial Real Estate sector, where poor-performing buildings increasingly become a liability. More than ever, it’s important to identify and document energy savings with a data driven approach.

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Ento’s CEO, Henrik Brink, talked about how AI will impact the energy sector in the future – and gave a sneak peak into Ento’s next product which is in the last stages of its development. The announcement was received with great interest among the attendees, reflecting a promising solution to industry needs in regard to the operation of ventilation and heating systems.

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Moving from visions to plans to actual action

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It is an ever-present topic: how does one turn plans into actions and create actual value? We tried answering this question in a compelling panel discussion featuring Janne Pløen (Danish Agriculture and Food Council), Peter Weitzmann (DEAS A/S), Jakob Nørby (4B Consulting), and Anders Bindslev Rask (Municipality of Hjørring). The four of them shared their valuable experiences and ideas about how to turn ambitious climate goals into tangible actions with the help of data.

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It was a day with invaluable lessons shared and inspiration ignited. We can proudly say that the first Ento Summit served as a catalyst for forging new partnerships and amplifying the collective commitment to sustainable energy practices. We hope that the conversations and actions will continue beyond the summit – and we are already looking forward to Ento Summit 2024.

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Photos by Nicolas Jægergaard Nielsen