The European Commission awarded ProjectZero Sustainable Energy Communities Award 2010

For the first time ever, a Danish project has won the European Commission prestigious award for the best sustainable energy solution.

The winner was the ProjectZero vision, turning Sonderborg into a sustainable ZEROcarbon growth area by 2029.

Sonderborg's ProjectZero was competing against other outstanding candidates such as Middelfart Municipality with a project on energy retrofit of public buildings, Frankfurt-am Main with an ambitious project on building a city of passive houses. The same idea was also suggested by Southern University of Netherlands. Cisco Systems Inc. suggested a very sophisticated cross-national project on using ICT to improve the efficiency of urban infrastructures. But it was ProjectZero,Sonderborg that won the award.

The Awards Ceremony took place Tuesday evening at the Théâtre du Vaudeville in Brussels. EU Energy Commissioner, Günther H. Ottinger, handed over the prestigious prize to Aase Nyegaard, Mayor of Sonderborg Municipality, and it was a proud and very happy Mayor, who accepted the prize on behalf of Sønderborg's ProjectZero.

- We have always known that Sonderborg's ProjectZero is a unique project. Nowhere else so many private and public parties work together on such an ambitious project like ProjectZero. It has echoed around the world and people from many countries have visited us to learn about the project and the concept behind it. And now we have received the European Commission's award. It means a lot, when I look at all the good candidates, we were competing against. The award we have received, will give us even more energy to work on this project, says the Mayor, Aase Nyegaard.

The EU Climate Commissioner, Connie Hedegaard, was present at the Award Ceremony which simultaneously took place with EU Sustainable Energy Week from 22 to 26 March in Brussels and other major cities across Europe.

CEO of ProjectZero, Peter Rathje, attended the Awards Ceremony in Brussels together with the Director of Culture and Business Development, Michael Willemar Svanoe from Sonderborg Municipality and project manager Lotte Gramkow from ProjectZero, who prepared the application to the European Competition. Peter Rathje is enthusiastic about the great honor to Sønderborg.

- I am very pleased with the award, which will help to focus on ProjectZero as an outstanding and ambitious project that is now recognized beyond Denmark's borders. ProjectZero is a unique project that includes all households, businesses and public institutions of the Sonderborg area. And this award proves clearly the professional quality of our project. Right now we are busy with replacing the oil burners with heat pumps, with energy retrofitting municipal buildings and with adding geothermal heat to our district heating networks, "says Peter Rathje.

Many qualities of ProjectZero were highlighted at the Awards Ceremony. Approaches, methods and management of ProjectZero are top class and can be showcased as a model project for other regions in Europe.

The joy and pride of the prestigious European award is huge in the Sonderborg area. This also applies to Peter Mads Clausen, the Chairman of ProjectZero Foundation.

- It's nice that other people can see that Sonderborg with ProjectZero has started a serious project. We must achieve ZERO- to become a ZEROcarbon area – through massive energy efficiency improvements and conversion of energy sources to the area's own renewable energy. Sonderborg area has the potential because we have a high concentration of technology and knowledge companies that provide the solutions. We have recently created a master plan that shows how we will achieve the goal and make the climate wise decisions. The EU award is an excellent reward for our project. It means a lot, says Peter Mads Clausen.

ProjectZero Sonderborg has won in the category "Sustainable Energy Communities'. There were also awards for 4 other categories.