On a very cold Wednesday morning, wrapped up in full safety gear and with plenty of coffee to keep warm, Miriam van Kooperen, GreenScale’s Senior Director of Procurement, and Hardy Baldwin, Director of QHSE (Quality, Health, Safety, and Environment), headed to our site in Sirdal, Norway, for the project kick-off meeting, which marks the start of site preparation works for our development of Tonstad DataPark.
Partnering with GreenScale on the site preparation is, Stangeland Maskin, a Norwegian company established in 1959 with more than 700 employees, extensive experience delivering similar developments, and a growing fleet of electric and low emission machines. Stangeland Maskin is working together with the company Nortømmer, which will be completing the work on site.
As Tom Andre Rødland, Project Manager at Stangeland, shares:
“Stangeland Maskin is pleased to be part of this project, and we’ve already experienced a strong and collaborative working relationship with GreenScale. Drawing on our experience from similar developments, we look forward to contributing to a safe, efficient and predictable delivery. We’re also looking forward to the local opportunities this project will create.”
Job opportunities are already emerging, even at this early stage, and it’s only the beginning. A recent independent analysis by Samfunnsøkonomisk Analyse (SØA) esimates that once construction begins, GreenScale’s development will create approximately 630 direct full-time equivalents in Sirdal, along with approximately 170 full time equivalents in project management, engineering, and administrative roles elsewhere in Norway. Total employment during the construction period, including ripple effects, is estimated at over 2,000 full time equivalents annually, alongside NOK 2.7 billion (approximately €230 million) in annual value creation.
Works will continue until mid-March, and you can find full details on what to expect on Sirdal Info.
We’re really looking forward to the months ahead, continuing to work closely with local companies and being present in the community as the project progresses.