Case Study: Vattenfall achieves 81% faster POC time-to-value and reduced compliance risk with Alation

European Energy Company Harnesses the Power of Data to Become Fossil Free

Vattenfall, a major European energy company headquartered in Solna, Sweden, pursues a bold “fossil‑free living within one generation” goal while operating across Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, the UK and Germany. Its cross‑sector, cross‑border operations (for example using wind power to produce hydrogen for steelmaking) depend on timely, shared data, but siloed systems limited collaboration, operational efficiency and regulatory compliance—exposing the company to high risks and potential multimillion‑euro fines under rules like the GDPR.

To solve this, Vattenfall deployed the Alation Data Catalog—connecting Azure, Snowflake, on‑prem systems and Power BI—built a business glossary, appointed data stewards, and adopted TrustCheck and policy automation to govern data use. The catalog democratized data and sped proof‑of‑concept time‑to‑value by 81% (from 3–4 months to 3–4 weeks), improved data literacy and cross‑team collaboration, and reduced compliance and operational risk (with potential savings of millions); as of November 2021 they had 750 licenses and 300+ active users.

Vattenfall

Sebastian Kaus

Data Governance Lead