About Sandra Šlihte
Sandra studied heat, gas and water technology engineering at Riga Technical University in her native Latvia, received an internship to Riga City District Heating Company in 2010 and has been working in district heating ever since.
“Since joining Vattenfall two years ago I’ve rediscovered my passion for engineering!
District heating is quite new in the UK so to be so closely involved in developing projects to help local residents go fossil free and reduce emissions is very rewarding. Vattenfall’s heat business in the UK has grown quickly but we are still a small team and in many ways we operate like a start-up which is exciting and rewarding, but hard work!
One of the reasons I was attracted to Vattenfall is the fact it is such an international organisation. I talk to colleagues across Europe all the time and if I have a technical question I know I can reach out to more than 200 other engineers.
Committed to diversity
Being so well-connected with other engineers means you can innovate and share ideas, as well as learn from mistakes to develop the best possible projects. Vattenfall is very committed to diversity in its workforce which is also important to me. I was a founding member of the ‘Women in District Heating Group’, a UK networking group for women in the industry. I’m also a mentor for The Girls’ Network which aims to inspire and help young women to pursue their ambitions.
If I hadn’t become an engineer my back-up plan was to be a professional hip-hop dancer! I’ve been dancing since I was five and used to own a dance studio in Latvia.”