The traditional Builders' Seminar of the Building Construction Industry Eastern Finland District in Joroinen dealt with the increasingly important and topical theme of the green transition in construction due to climate change. The event host, Regional Manager Kimmo Anttonen, who opened the seminar, emphasized that the green transition and responsibility are an opportunity worth billions of euros for the construction industry rather than a disadvantage or a mandatory obligation. Companies that start making changes in time will benefit the most from it. On the other hand, we must also be prepared for the fact that Finnish and European Union legislators will influence the green transition with expanding and tightening standards.
Director of the Finnish Building Construction Industry Association Ville Wartiovaara explained the preparatory work for the construction sector's responsibility program that started in 2023. According to him, responsibility is a normal activity that concerns the entire value chain of construction, carried out together, and must be promoted on many fronts. The responsibility work of the green transition offers new business opportunities to offset costs and improves the reputation of the construction sector, for example to support the attractiveness of the sector.
"The Construction Industry Responsibility Program, completed at the end of 2024, includes an annual responsibility analysis of the entire industry. It will result in five key strategic themes: climate issues such as low carbon, construction that takes biodiversity, i.e. nature, a life-cycle-oriented circular economy, social responsibility such as investing in the well-being and safety of the workforce, and business transparency, i.e. a fair value chain for all parties," Ville states.
"The most pressing issue in the construction industry is probably social responsibility. The Informed Construction Site concept is a good guideline in this regard. The Restoration Regulation is perhaps a small 'hot potato' for our industry, and there may be 'bubbles' in the circular economy as well. The Finnish Construction Industry Federation has prepared a responsibility database and guidance material and is organising training," said Ville Wartiovaara.
Expert of the Finnish Building Construction Industry Association, M.Sc. Jani Kemppainen also encouraged companies to take ownership of the green transition, talking about the legislation that affects it and the outlook for the coming years. According to him, a climate assessment requirement for the construction sector has come into force at the beginning of this year – excluding single-family houses. It applies to companies applying for a new construction permit after 1 January 2026.
The date of submission of the building permit determines which legislation applies. It is worth being careful, as significant changes are made to laws and other green transition standards every year by decision-makers in both Finland and the European Union. For example, the update of the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) will pay increasing attention to mechanical cooling of the supply air of buildings, the introduction of solar energy and building automation, Kemppainen reminded,
According to him, a climate report must be carried out before the final inspection of the building, but a preliminary list of construction products must already be available when applying for a building permit. New regulations on this matter are coming from the European Union from the beginning of 2028. The limit values for climate reports are also becoming significantly stricter than the current one from the beginning of 2029. There is now less than three years to learn and develop operations according to the still relatively light carbon dioxide emission standards and to prepare for their tightening. For example, the limit value for residential apartment buildings will be reduced by a quarter to 12 kg O2/m2.
"The low-carbon requirements for construction concrete are increasing as classifications become stricter. In practice, from 2029 onwards, only low-carbon concrete can be used in the above-ground parts of buildings. The climate assessment must take into account not only the buildings themselves, but also the carbon footprint and handprint of the construction site over a 50-year life cycle, i.e. the building's useful life including its demolition," said Kemppainen.
"Since there are no qualification requirements for those who prepare climate reports, at least at the beginning, their content can vary wildly depending on the expertise of the authors. Heating methods are also treated unequally when calculating the carbon footprint. For example, district heating suffers from the current calculation method. However, efforts are being made to obtain their own actual emission measurements for district heating networks. There are no known sanctions for deficiencies in the report and exceeding the standards yet. In any case, the building inspectorate will check the climate reports submitted by the final inspection of buildings for compliance with the limit values. The building inspectorate may grant exemptions for minor deficiencies," said Kemppainen.
Pieksämäki Vitality Director Karoliina Tilaeus spoke about the sustainability projects and principles of the green transition of his city and South Savo more broadly. According to him, these have been well taken into account in Pieksämäki's economic policy program, for example in planning and public and private investments.
Clean energy projects have been and are being created in a promising way, worth up to 1,5 billion euros. Pieksämäki is a significant wind power center in Eastern Finland. Solar power, biomethanol and data center projects are also being prepared in the area. Data center and solar power projects are also underway in Mikkeli. Savonlinna's strong industrial and business structure, with its technology parks, is being renewed towards a green transition in energy production and the circular economy.
Customer Service Manager at Savon Voima's electricity network operating in Northern Savo and North Karelia Saku Särkkä examined the prospects for his group's clean transition in energy production. According to him, heat pumps, electric boilers and thermal batteries are among the most important technologies for reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
“Our goal is to achieve carbon neutrality in district heating production by 2030, when the use of peat ends. Our emissions from district heating production have already fallen by a quarter since 2018. At the same time, the utilization of waste heat has improved. We will invest significantly in the development of district heating networks and in improving the capacity and connectivity of our electricity network over the next five-year period. We are also seeking growth and profitability in solar and wind power production,” said Särkkä.
Founder and CEO of technology company Carbonaide Oy Tapio Vehmas shed light on the possibilities for better carbon storage in the future. According to him, concrete plays a significant role in binding and storing carbon dioxide.
"At the same time, it is possible to replace cement as a binder in concrete. In addition to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, the hardening of concrete improves and the possibilities of use increase while the strength level remains at the same level. There is also no difference in the bonding of concrete to steel. Finland is a world pioneer in this regard. Carbonated concrete is already in production and in use. Exports to Central Europe may open next year," Vehmas reminded.
Carbonaide Oy focuses on the production of technology based on the utilization and storage of carbon dioxide in the concrete industry.
Text and pictures: Ilpo Lommi