Named Green Operations Team of the Year: – Helping to lift the entire industry

– The team has not only improved their own buildings, but contributed to lifting the entire industry, says CEO of the Green Building Alliance, Mie Fuglseth.
The award for Green Operations Team of the Year 2025 went to Team Statens vegvesen, Buildings and Property.
– The award is about more than energy, but there is no doubt that we would not have received this award without Energy Control. Together we have tested, failed and learned – and we have succeeded, says Martin Sæther, head of FDVU at the Norwegian Public Roads Administration.
He explains that they, as a government agency, want to take their social responsibility and inspire both government organisations and private actors to think differently and dare to try new things.
– We can't save the world on our own, but when 170,000 civil servants think greener, it creates ripple effects, says Sæther.

– Couldn't be more deserved
Tommy Hagenes at Energy Control says the company has worked closely with the Norwegian Public Roads Administration for many years.
– We have many good customers, but the Norwegian Public Roads Administration is among those we have worked most closely with in recent years. We have a close innovation partnership and they therefore also play an important role in the further development of our solutions, says Hagenes.
He believes the Norwegian Public Roads Administration deserves credit for the work they have done in recent years.
– Public sector organisations often come across as somewhat stolid and with cumbersome processes. The Norwegian Public Roads Administration is the complete opposite. They are curious and they turn things around incredibly quickly. The award as Green Operations Team of the Year is therefore incredibly well deserved, says Hagenes.

Lifting the entire industry
The winner was announced by State Secretary in the Ministry of Energy, Marte H. Grindaker (Labour), at the Green Operations Conference on 19 November.
The Green Building Alliance reports that it was a proud team that accepted the award at Thon Hotel Storo:
– Thank you so much! We haven't had the largest budgets or teams, but we have been curious, courageous and patient, says Sæther.
Every year the Green Building Alliance presents the Green Operations Team of the Year award to a team that stands out through its work to reduce the environmental impact of buildings. This year the award is being presented for the thirteenth time.
– Congratulations to Team Statens vegvesen, who have come up with good and innovative measures despite limited resources, says Fuglseth.
The other nominees for Green Operations Team of the Year were Team KLP Eiendom at Stein Arve Nilsen and Team Kvadrat, Amfi Drift Storebrand.

The jury's rationale:
The operations team at the Norwegian Public Roads Administration's vehicle inspection offices in Drammen and at Risløkka in Oslo are responsible for operations in combined facilities from the 1970s and 1990s with a total area of 8,500 square metres. The premises house public-facing services such as driving licence training, registration and vehicle inspection, and include offices, inspection halls, public areas and canteens.

The Norwegian Public Roads Administration has an ambitious sustainability strategy with five focus areas, where climate/energy and circularity in particular are the most important drivers in the day-to-day improvement of the properties. Through a partnership with a supplier, the team has been active users and co-developers of sensors and energy monitoring that provide real-time data, which has made it possible to introduce demand-controlled ventilation, optimise technical systems and rapidly identify energy thieves. The results are strong: for just one ventilation system in one of the offices, energy use has been reduced by over 31,000 kWh (approximately 25 percent) and the estimated annual cost saving is over 46,000 kroner. Faster response to faults reduces the risk of operational disruption and additional costs. Travel to check faults in buildings has been reduced by as much as 27 percent.

The team has also delivered significant circular economy gains. The Norwegian Public Roads Administration is the first government agency to collect used paper towels from both employees and the public. By aggregating waste from many small locations and using Risløkka as a hub, they achieve sufficient volume for efficient recycling – around 2 tonnes of paper towels per year are sent back to the producer for new production. All work clothing in the Roads Administration is now collected, with 15–20 percent reused and the rest recycled – a solution that has inspired Posten/Bring, Mesta and Vy to do the same.

The jury is particularly impressed by what the operations team has achieved with limited resources. By spreading insights from learning in their own operations practice through networks such as Proptech Norway, various operations forums and publishing on LinkedIn, the team has not only improved their own buildings but contributed to lifting the entire industry. With a clear cost–benefit focus and the "good enough" principle as their guiding star, they have developed and adopted solutions in buildings that are neither new nor technologically advanced – and made them smarter, more energy efficient and more circular through targeted, practical innovation that works in the day-to-day world of building operations.

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