Power Woman of the Year: “Everyone in the industry benefits from greater gender equality”

Gender equality is not just a matter of fairness.

– In my experience, a diverse workforce produces the best results. It creates greater dynamism in the company, which favours both innovation and profitability.

This is the opinion of Ulrika Tornerefelt, recently named Power Woman of the Year, who will take to the stage during Elfack 2025.

It’s no exaggeration to say that Ulrika Tornerefelt’s career trajectory has been stratospheric. The 48-year-old is co-founder and CEO of the company Stella Futura, established in 2018. Two years later, turnover stood at SEK 4.5 million. By 2023, it had risen to SEK 266 million. On 20 November, she received the Power Woman of the Year 2024 award.

– It was a great moment in my career. The nominees were a list of women who really inspire and make a difference in this industry, she says.

Getting the right balance in your team

She believes that Stella Futura’s explosive development is above all the result of successful teamwork.

– We have found a balance between business acumen and deep technical expertise. And we have succeeded in building an entrepreneurial spirit within the company; everyone is open, inquisitive and inquiring. In a company that operates in a dynamic market, you need that culture, I think. We also started at exactly the right time, when the electricity system transition was starting to accelerate. Our offerings became hugely relevant.

Women on the roofs’ was a success

It all began in Africa.

– We are working to put together long-term sustainable financing models for the expansion of solar energy in industry and healthcare, Ulrika explains.

– For the actual installation work, which is normally outsourced, we have engaged local African women who we are also training as installers. They have proven to be very keen to learn and reliable.

The project, called ‘Women on the roofs’, has proved extremely successful.

– To date, we have trained some 70 women who are contracted by us to manage the operation and maintenance of our customers’ solar installations.

The African business is in a completely separate company, Infra Futura, so Ulrika has actually founded and run two companies in parallel (together with co-founder Jonas Jonsson). In the Nordic region, Stella Futura’s business is about sustainable business models of renewable energy systems with a focus on battery storage.

– We don’t tie ourselves to one technology supplier; instead, we create close partnerships over time with those who have the best warranty terms, most reliable technology and best quality. And we try, as far as possible, to work with European value chains.

Employees with diverse backgrounds

The journey towards sustainability requires broad expertise and different perspectives, Ulrika says. That’s why she is keen on all-round, diversified recruitment:

– Our staff are evenly balanced between women and men. We have employees of different ages and from different countries. If you want to work innovatively, smarter and faster, you need a mixed group. Otherwise, it’s easy to become one dimensional, which is not good for the work culture.

Encouraging more women

Ulrika Tornerefelt has a clear ambition during her year as Power Woman:

– I intend to promote female entrepreneurship. If we look at all the companies that have popped up in the energy industry in recent years, there are few female founders.

Ulrika herself has become a mentor for a female-driven start-up, Rebaba, which aims to upcycle electric car batteries. And she wants to encourage more women in the industry, for example at Elfack 2025, where she will take part in the stage programme.

– I’m really looking forward to it! Elfack is an important meeting place and a very relevant forum – also when it comes to these issues, she says.