Finland’s final working coal power plant was officially shut down on Tuesday, April 1st. Olli Sirkka, CEO of energy group Helen, said the Salmisaari plant—owned by the capital Helsinki—was being phased out, while his company replaces fossil fuels with waste heat and heat pumps. It will also continue to burn pellets and wood chips.
In 2003, coal accounted for 23% of Finland’s energy use. Last year this dropped to less than 1%, with Helen claiming its decision will cut Finland’s total emissions further, by nearly 2%.
In 2019, the previous government passed a law to ban coal from 2029, with the aim of encouraging ‘renewable’ energy sources. “It is perhaps necessary to admit that a clean transition does not come cheaply. It is indeed a value choice, and it is one that we have made both as a society and as Helen,” Sirkka told Reuters.
Campaigners have welcomed the decision, but it could yet prove costly when the cold winter months put immediate pressure on energy use. It is yet another example of governments trying to meet ‘Green Deal’-style targets by 2040.
