Gothenburg increasingly dominant within Swedish R&D
Gothenburg is solidifying its position as an innovation powerhouse, with business R&D expenditure growing significantly. In 2023, companies in Gothenburg’s county, Västra Götaland, spent over SEK 9 billion more on R&D than companies in the Stockholm County. The R&D intensity in Gothenburg's county is more than twice that of Stockholm and the rest of Sweden – and the gap continues to widen.
Companies in Västra Götaland are allocating more and more resources to R&D, now accounting for 35 per cent of Sweden's private R&D expenditure, according to recent statistics from Statistics Sweden (SCB). Altogether, companies in the region invested SEK 58.6 billion in R&D during 2023, mainly in Gothenburg and its surrounding municipalities.
Compared to 2021, private R&D expenditure in the region increased by approximately SEK 6 billion SEK in real terms, representing around 80 per cent of Sweden’s growth in private R&D expenditure.
Despite Stockholm County being significantly larger than Västra Götaland in terms of population, business sector size, and private employment, business R&D expenditure in the capital totalled SEK 49.2 billion.
Driving Swedish growth
When we look at R&D intensity, Gothenburg stands out. In Västra Götaland, business R&D spending amounts to 5.6 per cent of the gross regional product – more than twice as much as in Stockholm County and Sweden as a whole. The same pattern holds when we look at R&D expenditure in comparison to the number of private-sector employees.
“These figures reflect Gothenburg companies’ strong willingness to invest and their ability to increase knowledge content at every stage leading up to the final delivery to the customer. There is high global demand for the products, services, and processes developed by export companies in the region. They are essentially driving Swedish growth and are increasingly doing so from here,” says Patrik Andersson, CEO at Business Region Göteborg.
Large global companies such as AstraZeneca, Volvo Group, and Volvo Cars are the primary contributors to these R&D investments, but SKF, Preem, Saab, Essity, Ericsson, Stena, Nouryon, Borealis, and Zeekr Technology also invest significantly in R&D in the Gothenburg region. Other innovation-intensive companies include Mölnlycke Healthcare, Getinge, Einride, and Heart Aerospace.
“Investments by large corporations open doors and create opportunities across all areas of business. The tech boom we’ve seen in the region in recent years is in many ways tied to these companies' investments. In terms of deep tech, Gothenburg is starting to attract significant interest,” says Patrik Andersson.
The shift towards sustainable production, products, and services is a key driver of these investments in western Sweden.
“The need to speed up in AI and automation, and of course the shift towards electrification and replacing fossil-based raw materials, is driving much of the R&D investment. New opportunities in life sciences, a strong growth area in Gothenburg, are also contributing,” says Per Österström, Head of Collaboration and Innovation at Business Region Gothenburg.
Next week, Business Region Göteborg will present a report that provides a deeper analysis of the above developments: “Business R&D in West Sweden.”
Sweden’s total R&D expenditure was SEK 224 billion in 2023
Companies account for 74 per cent of the nation’s R&D expenditure, with international companies the biggest contributor. Business R&D expenditure includes salaries for in-house R&D staff, purchased R&D, and in-house R&D investments.
With its many government agencies and research-focused universities, Stockholm County’s total R&D investment is roughly the same as Västra Götaland’s. Each region invests about SEK 68 billion per year across private, academic, and public sectors.
Fact: Sweden among the leaders in R&D
Sweden ranks fifth globally in terms of R&D intensity (R&D expenditure as a proportion of GDP), behind only Israel, South Korea, Taipei, and the USA, according to the latest OECD statistics. When WIPO similarly measures innovation potential, Sweden ranks second in the world. A major reason for these high rankings is that Gothenburg-based companies allocate a significant share of their revenue to R&D.
