It was last Friday that the commission of inquiry on the future of aviation fuel ”biojet” was published. The who has led the investigation that the previous MP-spokesperson Maria Wetterstrand. In the investigation will Wetterstrand up to 30 percent of aviation fuel which is supplied to Sweden in the year 2030 should be renewable.
not mentioned the investigation is that Maria Wetterstrand is a shareholder and sits on the board of directors of the company Cortus Energy that have received support from the Swedish energy agency to investigate the possibilities to produce renewable biofuel in Sweden.
In november of last year writing Cortus ceo Rolf Ljunggren in a press release that the support from the Swedish energy agency is of almost 400,000 kronor for ”a feasibility study for producing green jet fuel through the gasification of forest fuel”, with the help of their technology.
”now, If we can find and qualify a viable solution for green aviation fuel market, the potential is huge”, says Rolf Ljunggren in the press release.
in the company as a director in 2013 and became a shareholder on september 30, 2015. She has since increased its shareholding gradually. In June last year, doubling her holding to 615.000 shares, which today are worth 209.100 crowns when the stock price is in the writing moment at sek 0.34.
The latest aktieköpet did Wetterstrand four months after she received the assignment of the government.
The right-wing populist news site Samhällsnytt was the first to tell you about Wetterstrands of the two roles.
Expressen says Wetterstrand that she did not see any problems that she has had both quests at the same time.
– It is very far from presenting a proposal to a decision that there would be a sale of some biofuel from a plant which in general is not built yet, so it is an incredibly far-fetched link between the two, ” she says to the newspaper.
Olle Lundin, professor of administrative law at Uppsala university, says that the beach weather may have been guilty of a conflict of interest. The burning question is, according to Lundin, if there is any personal gain for the beach weather.
” Just because you happen to have a smaller shareholding in a company, you can not always be biased in relation to it. So see law. But in a board member is that she has a duty to promote the company’s best. There you have a potential worry. She takes with her the company’s best in the investigation task? She would certainly say no if you ask but according to the companies act, she has at the same time a duty to promote the company’s best interest, ” he says.
investigators considered as an administrative authority, and reads thus under the administrative procedure act, and the rules for disqualification as included in which, ” says Lundin. Recently tightened just jävsreglerna around personal financial gain to ”if you are supposed to be affected by the decision in a not insignificant extent”.
Even if it would not be a jävssituation is her actions problematic from a citizens ‘ perspective, the view of the professor.
” She has not only links to industry but to a company that operates in this industry. Then I would probably find that it is quite problematic. Most of the people are sufficiently wise to ignore this. But it is about how it looks from the outside. Why should we believe that she is not taking undue account? says Lundin.
Wetterstrand answer DN’s questions via e-mail. She believes that the various assignments are consistent with each other. Of the possibility that she was guilty of a conflict of interest, and any credibility problem vis-à-vis the public responds Wetterstrand:
” I have done my mission and put forward a proposal on how the policy can best promote biofuels for aviation. So far, operators in the industry have been positive in their reactions, and the proposal is considered to be well in line with what was expected. Based on that, assess the utredningsresultatet according to your own head.
” Not at all, because Cortus does not produce jet fuels.
– It says in my CV that the government received.
” I would have put the same suggestion if I not been sitting in the Cortus board of directors. I would have bought shares in the Cortus even if I have not done flygutredningen. It has not affected my conclusions.
– that the company had run out of money and there was an issue where a board member is expected to be with.
” there it is today, and it will require very large investments before something like this can become reality, writes Maria Wetterstrand.
the DN has sought environment and klimatminister Isabella Lövin (MP) that received the inquiry as well as Cortus Energy’s founder and ceo Rolf Ljunggren.
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