According to Olli Sirkka, CEO of Helen, the shutdown on April 1 will both lead to reduced emissions and slow down rising energy costs for customers.
To replace production from the phased-out coal-fired power plant, Helen will use electricity, waste heat, and heat pumps, and continue to burn pellets and chips. The goal, according to Olli Sirkka, is for emissions to be five percent lower in 2030 than in 1990 and for all combustion to cease by 2040.
Finland's production capacity for renewable electricity and heat has grown rapidly in recent years, and the use of coal has almost died out since the then government adopted a law in 2019 to ban coal from 2029.
The environmental organization Beyond Fossil Fuels notes, however, that Finland's coal phase-out is only almost complete. Two small facilities still use some coal in their production, and a third is still used strategically for emergency situations or peak consumption.
