A new rental solution attracting interest

Municipal-owned swimming centres are causing headaches in many places around the country. During Almedalen Week last summer, they were a separate seminar topic. The reason is simple: just over 75 per cent of Sweden’s swimming centres are more than 40 years old and the total investment needed over the next decade is between SEK 40–60 billion.

Nacka Municipality is no exception. The two existing swimming centres – in Saltsjöbaden and central Nacka – are either being replaced, or are planned for replacement, with new buildings. At the same time, the need for swimming centres is growing because Nacka is one of the most expansive municipalities in Sweden and the population is forecast to continue growing by about 2,400 people per year.

Ekobad won

At the onset of discussions about a third swimming centre located adjacent to Myrsjö Sports Centre in Orminge, the political majority wanted to try a leasing model. The tenderers included HemTag, a joint venture formed in 2021 with the aim of developing, owning and running swimming centres at a time when many municipalities are dealing with end-of-life swimming pools.

HemTag has also developed its own patent-pending concept: Ekobad. Ekobad reduces building time by 6–12 months, reduces costs by 15 per cent or more and reduces the carbon footprint by 30–40 per cent by using less concrete and more wood in the construction.

HemTag won the tender, which briefly means that Nacka Municipality will lease the completed Myrsjö swimming centre, including operations and maintenance, at a cost of SEK 23.9 million per year for 33 years.

The solution has many advantages for the municipality, according to Anders Mebius.

“The biggest advantage is that there is no risk of any additional costs for the municipality during the contractual term. Nor are there any guarantee commitments or buy-back clauses. For that, we pay a marginally higher amount than if we were to build the centre ourselves and bear the risk.”

Many values

There are other values apart from the purely financial ones. 

“Ekobad is a smart and innovative solution with a focus on sustainability. The swimming centre is well thought out in every aspect, as confirmed by the third-party expert that reviewed the tenders on our behalf. 

The fact that Hemsö and Tagehus Holding are backing Ekohus is another advantage. 

“Nacka has worked with Hemsö before. Hemsö is a solid company with know-how and a long-term approach. That gives us additional security,” says Anders Mebius, who has already noticed a major interest in Myrsjö swimming centre, even though it won’t be finished until 2025.