A 2021 under the sign of the crisis

Spotlight on
Finland

TECHNOLOGY AT HEART

TECHNOLOGY IN ACTION TECHNOLOGY MEETS POLICY

Discover how Finnish technology companies are Jaakko Hirvola, CEO of Technology Industries of
breaking new ground in energy efficiency to transform Finland, talks to us about how policy can help Finnish
the challenges posed by climate change into drivers of companies continue innovating to drive down
innovation and economic opportunity. emissions in industry and beyond.

TECHNOLOGY
IN ACTION

Unlocking the Driving down emissions
benefits of energy
efficiency Electric motors. They probably don’t cross your mind
too often, yet they drive much of your day-to-day:
What comes to mind when you think of Finland? whether in the pump stations delivering water to
A blanket of forest punctuated by crystal-clear lakes? your home, the district heating systems warming you
A herd of reindeer traversing an Arctic snowscape? through winter, or the elevator zipping you to your
The Northern Lights illuminating the starry night office each morning. This ubiquity comes with a high
sky? This is a place where the wonders of nature take cost in terms of energy, however. Electric motors
centre stage.Yet this Nordic nation is confronted consume around 30% of all electricity used worldwide,
by the same challenges facing us the world over, as and the vast majority of those in operation are woefully
climate change and rising temperatures collide with inefficient. Fortunately there is a company working at
a growing population demanding ever more from the various sites across Finland to turn this around: ABB.
earth’s resources. As emissions rise and the planet
warms at an alarming rate, can we find a way to reduce
carbon emissions and safeguard these ecosystems for
generations to come?

There is light on the horizon, however. Because Finland
is well-known for something else, too: innovative
technology companies that are world-leading in
delivering solutions for a sustainable future. The
country has earned a reputation as a pioneer in the
design and manufacture of low-emissions technology
– in particular in the area of energy efficiency. As a
weapon to fight climate change, energy efficiency has
enormous potential. Not only because the best way to
reduce CO2 in the atmosphere is to avoid generating
it in the first place. But also because saving energy
lowers operating costs, generating clear business
benefits. This makes energy efficiency a rare ‘win-win’
in the quest for sustainability; the challenge is how
to unlock the benefits. For a number of trailblazing
Finnish companies, this challenge is fast becoming an
opportunity.

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Investing The company has been continuously evolving electric
in energy motor technology to ensure it meets the very highest
efficiency efficiency standards. Production sites in Helsinki and
simply Vaasa already manufacture motors meeting the ‘super
makes good premium’ standard IE4 – a generation above what is
business sense. currently required by EU regulation. The real magic
happens, however, when these high-efficiency motors
Jussi Aarnivuo, Country Environmental Manager, are combined with something known as a variable
speed drive (VSD).
ABB Finland
VSDs solve a fundamental problem of electric motors:
ABB is a Swiss-Swedish multinational specialising in the speed and force of a conventional motor is fixed,
electrification, robotics and industrial automation. In as it is powered by a constant voltage. This is not
Finland alone, it employs 5,300 people at 22 locations, a problem per se, as long as the motor is running
generating annual revenue of €2.3 billion. In addition at the exact speed demanded by the process it’s
to two large manufacturing facilities, the Finnish powering. But what if there is a mismatch – such as in
operation centres on R&D with an annual budget of applications with fluctuating power needs, for example
over €130 million for new tech development – with when operating a fan or a pump? In a conventional
energy-efficient electric motors and drives squarely in system, the speed and force of the motor output can
focus. “We have been designing and manufacturing only be controlled by mechanical means, leading to a
electric motors here in Finland for over 130 years, so whole lot of wasted energy.
we know the technology inside out,” explains Jussi
Aarnivuo, Country Environmental Manager at ABB The VSD has changed the rules of the game. From the
Finland. outside, it is an unassuming box sitting between the
power supply and the electric motor. But inside, some
serious electrical wizardry is taking place as the system
continuously calculates and adjusts the voltage and
current required by the motor at any given moment,
transforming the power current to provide only the
energy the motor needs. Using a VSD can lower energy

Technology at Heart 3

consumption by between 30 and 50%, even as much with a pioneering portfolio of process solutions and
as 90% in some cases. ABB estimates that in 2016 technologies for mining, metallurgy, water treatment
their installed base of motors combined with VSDs and energy production. “Our mission is sustainable use
avoided generation of a whopping 290 terawatt hours of the earth’s natural resources,” says Kari Knuutila,
of electricity – a volume 20% higher than the entire Chief Technology Officer at Outotec, which last year
consumption of France that same year. reported sales of €1.3 billion with a headcount of 4,000.

With technologies like this, ABB Finland is transforming Energy efficiency is a central pillar of Outotec’s
the challenge of lowering emissions into an opening to offering. With many of its customers active in
innovate and create new business opportunities. There traditionally energy-intensive sectors, the company
is enormous untapped potential worldwide, with the estimates that the use of six of its key technologies in
vast majority of motors in use still highly inefficient 2018 prevented generation of a total 6.2 million tonnes
and fewer than 20% equipped with VSDs. Demand is of CO2 – equivalent to metropolitan Helsinki’s total
growing, as Mr Aarnivuo points out: “Energy efficiency carbon footprint. “If Outotec’s best-practice solutions
has certainly become a key factor in purchase were adopted worldwide in the production of non-
decisions.” Because ultimately it is an opportunity for ferrous metals alone, we would save between 40 and
ABB’s customers, too – not only to lower their carbon 70 million tonnes of CO2 annually,” adds Mr Knuutila.
footprint but to save on electricity costs. “Investing in
energy efficiency simply makes good business sense,” One impressive example of how Outotec combines
concludes Mr Aarnivuo. energy and resource efficiency is its innovative solution
for processing waste water. Thanks to the marvels of
Waste not, want not modern engineering, the average person doesn’t need
to think too much about where waste water goes once
In order to protect the planet for future generations, it leaves their home.Yet efficient and safe treatment
energy efficiency will have to go hand-in-hand with processes are vitally important to public health and
effective management of natural resources like hygiene. Outotec’s system is based on pre-drying with
minerals, water and air. Finnish firm Outotec has steam dryer technology followed by a fluidized bed
made it its business to tackle these twin challenges boiler, which allows high-moisture fuels to be burned in
a way that limits emissions.

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Our mission Forging ahead
is sustainable
use of the Our last example of energy-efficiency innovation
earth’s comes from what is perhaps an unexpected source: the
natural stainless steel sector. Finland is home to Outokumpu,
resources. the fourth-largest producer of stainless steel in the
world, which recorded sales of €6,872 million in 2018
Kari Knuutila, Chief Technology Officer, Outotec and employs over 10,000 people globally. Whether in
your washing machine, your car or your office building,
Where the solution really stands out is its chances are that Outokumpu stainless is a feature of
unprecedented level of energy efficiency. During the your daily life.
drying process, Outotec’s technology uses just one
third of the energy of a conventional system. “We The firm is regarded as the market leader in
have developed a ‘closed-loop’ steam dryer that sustainability for production of both stainless steel
utilises far less energy than a standard open dryer,” and ferrochrome, one of the main raw materials for
explains Mr Knuutila. Steam from the boiler is also stainless steel. In many ways, stainless steel is the ideal
used to power the system turbine, with the result that sustainable material. Corrosion- and heat-resistant, it
the whole operation is self-sustaining: aside from the is made to last. It is also highly recyclable: “In principle
natural gas needed at start-up, the plant requires no stainless steel can be recycled an infinite number of
external source of energy. Not only that, the turbine times,” points out Martti Sassi, Senior Vice President
also generates enough excess power to deliver several and Head of BA Ferrochrome at Outokumpu. “We can
megawatts of heat to the district heating network. be fairly sure that the material leaving our plant will
return to us again in the future to be re-melted and re-
Projects like these have cemented Outotec’s used.” An impressive 87% of Outokumpu’s production
reputation as an innovation leader, giving them a is derived from recycled materials. There’s a catch,
competitive advantage on the global market place. however: whether initial production or recycling, a
“Sustainability is where we have our leading edge,” huge amount of electricity is required to reach the
underlines Mr Knuutila. “And having a reputation 1,500 degrees Celsius needed for the melting process.
as a company that takes sustainability seriously will
only become more important – whether for winning Yet Outokumpu’s Tornio facility has shown how
customers, securing financing or attracting talent.” innovation can maximise efficiency even in a sector
with such intense energy demands. The site is home
to the most energy-efficient unit in the business,
with electricity consumption and CO2 emissions a

Innovation through
regulation?

Technology at Heart 5