SVERIGES METEOROLOGISKA OCH HYDROLOGISKA INSTITUT

Their core work

SMHI is Sweden's national meteorological and hydrological institute, providing weather forecasts, climate data, and water management services. In EU research, they contribute operational climate modelling, seasonal-to-decadal prediction systems, and hydrological forecasting expertise. They are a key European node for translating earth system models into actionable climate services — helping sectors like energy, agriculture, and water utilities make decisions based on climate data. Their work spans from global Earth system simulations to regional flood forecasting in West Africa.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014-2018), SMHI focused heavily on building foundational climate service frameworks — stakeholder engagement, socio-economic scenario development, and integrated assessment modelling (CRESCENDO, ERA4CS, Climateurope). From 2019 onward, their work shifted markedly toward operational Earth observation, machine learning applications, food security in Africa, and research infrastructure sustainability (e-shape, AfriCultuReS, IS-ENES3). The recent period also shows increased engagement with coastal and polar observation systems, suggesting a broadening from pure climate modelling toward applied environmental monitoring.

SMHI is moving from climate model development toward operational decision-support systems that combine Earth observation with machine learning — expect future projects at the intersection of AI, climate data, and sectoral applications.

How they like to work

SMHI overwhelmingly operates as a technical partner rather than a project leader — only 2 of 36 projects were coordinated, both relatively small and focused (FANFAR for flood forecasting, OSeaIce as an MSCA fellowship). With 458 unique consortium partners across 57 countries, they are a high-connectivity hub in European climate research, embedded in nearly every major Earth system modelling and climate services consortium. This makes them an easy partner to approach: they are experienced collaborators comfortable in large multinational consortia, but unlikely to take on the coordination burden.

SMHI has collaborated with 458 distinct partners across 57 countries, making them one of the most broadly connected climate institutions in Europe. Their network extends well beyond the EU into Africa (FANFAR, AfriCultuReS) and the Arctic, giving them unusual geographic reach for a national meteorological institute.

What sets them apart

SMHI occupies a rare position as both a national government agency and a deeply embedded European research partner — they bring operational weather and climate infrastructure that most research institutes simply cannot offer. Their combination of real-time forecasting systems, long-term climate modelling, and hydrological expertise makes them a one-stop partner for any project needing credible climate data pipelines. For consortium builders, SMHI adds institutional weight and operational credibility that strengthens proposals, particularly those requiring connections to Copernicus services or national meteorological networks.

Highlights from their portfolio

• PRIMAVERA
  Largest single project funding (EUR 1.1M) — high-resolution climate modelling for European risk assessment, reflecting SMHI's core competence at scale.
• FANFAR
  One of only two projects SMHI coordinated — operational flood forecasting for West Africa, demonstrating their ability to export Nordic hydrological expertise to developing regions.
• AfriCultuReS
  Unusual cross-sector reach: combining Earth observation, climate services, and food security for African agriculture — shows SMHI's capacity beyond traditional meteorology.