Sweden's incredible 'new' city being built entirely out of wood

Thanks to Sweden's changes in building regulations, wooden apartment blocks were made possible (Image: The Guardian )

A construction site in Sweden is catching the attention of many due to its unique character. Where you’d expect to hear the sound of drilling and banging of concrete, the scent of wood is undeniable. A former industrial area in Sickla, Stockholm, is set to become part of the “largest mass timber project in the world” according to the Swedish urban property developer Atrium Ljungberg.

Materials such as glulam (glued laminated timber) are used to make the columns and beams in the buildings frames and cross-laminated timber (CLT) for the slabs in the floors, ceilings and staircases. “It’s a fantastic working environment – no concrete dust, no silica dust issues. It’s clean and quiet,” said Niklas Häggström, shared project area manager at Atrium Ljungberg. In total, 25 neighbourhoods will cover 25 hectares. The first buildings are scheduled for completion in 2025, with the next phase – including 2,000 homes – planned for 2027. The scale of this project is huge, but the use of timber speeds it up substantially.

The architects say timber ‘should be part of the experience from the street’. (Image: The Guardian )

In 2022, Atrium Ljungberg set themselves an ambitious goal to become climate neutral by 2030, which explains why they chose timber as their structural material.

The company has claimed to have reduced its impact by 40%, and that’s before factoring in energy systems and reuse strategies, which was verified by researchers at Linköping University.

According to Angela Berg, its business area director, shifting from concrete to timber is not just a technical change – it is a mindset shift. “It shapes the whole city experience: from the facade materials to the greenery, to how people interact with their environment. It’s not about entering a building and seeing wood, it’s about feeling the difference everywhere,” she said.

Studies revealed that if 80% of new builds were built with wood instead of steel and concrete, it would help offset half of Europe’s construction industry emissions.

Another study revealed that a four-storey wooden building results in a net uptake of 150 tonnes of carbon dioxide, furthering their benefits to the climate.

This is possible because the wood stores the CO2 absorbed by the growing trees. (The analysis takes into account the energy used in wood production, transport and the construction of the building.)

there have been conflicting interests between forestry, biodiversity and climate concerns (Image: Getty)

While each building will have a different personality, wood will permeate the city inside and out, said Oskar Norelius, an architect at White Arkitektur who has worked with Atrium Ljungberg on the project. “It shouldn’t be something you discover only when you walk in. The timber should be part of the experience from the street.”

The aim is that the city will also improve the wellbeing of the people living in these buildings. “Wood regulates indoor humidity, creating a naturally comfortable climate throughout the year. Beyond that, studies show that visible timber has psychological benefits – it reduces stress, helps children concentrate better, and even supports faster recovery in patients. These effects carry over into offices and homes too.” explained Norelius.

The architect recently worked on Sara cultural centre in Skellefteå, which is the Nordic region’s tallest timber building to date, sitting 20 storey’s high and put the city on the map as a global pioneer. “While other countries often have the knowledge, they haven’t implemented it at scale like Sweden has,” he said.

Before 1994 Swedish building codes had restricted the use of wood in buildings that were over two storeys, mainly due to fire safety concerns. But after the country revised its building regulations, materials were no longer explicitly banned, but instead expected to meet functional demands for fire safety, structural stability and sound insulation.