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Turning challenges into opportunities — a carbon neutral vision for electricity and district heat for 2050
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Turning challenges into opportunities — a carbon neutral vision for electricity and district heat for 2050
40 pages, pdf
Finnish Energy Industries
Lappeenranta University of Technology
Tampere
University of Technology
Turku School of Economics, Finland Futures Research
Centre
FOREWORD
As a result of climate change, great fluctuations in energy prices, and
issues related to the security
of energy supplies and energy security, energy
has become a key topic of conversation and subject of
decision-making in
Finland, in the EU and in the entire world. It is understood that energy
solutions
and policies must be planned in the long term, often with a time
span of several decades.
In its meeting on 12 June 2008, the Board of the Finnish Energy Industries
decided that the Finnish
Energy Industries will prepare its own vision in
support of the Finnish climate and energy policy.
The vision aims for
carbon-neutral production of electricity and district heat that supports
economic
growth with a target year of 2050.
The vision seeks, on the one hand, electricity and heat production that
produces as few emissions as
possible and, on the other hand, replacing the
use of fossil fuels with electricity and district heat in
living, transport
and industry. The actions are also always examined from the aspects of
well-being
and competitiveness, as well as domestic content and security of
supplies.
Extensive preparatory work was carried out in 2008—2009 as a basis for the
vision. The preparatory
work was carried out and directed by Professor Jarmo
Partanen and Professor Samuli Honkapuro of
Lappeenranta University of
Technology, Professor Seppo Valkealahti of Tampere University of
Technology,
Research Professor Jyrki Luukkanen and Senior Researcher Jarmo
Vehmas of the Finland Futures
Research Centre of Turku School of Economics,
and Docent Juha Honkatukia, D.Sc. (Econ.), of the
Government Institute for
Economic Research. Other participants were Project Researcher
Francesca
Allievi, Researcher Suvisanna Mustonen, Niko Jauhiainen, M.Sc.,
Research Assistant Anne Karjalainen,
Research Assistant Juha Panula-Ontto,
Trainee Maria Ahoniemi, and Trainee Mikko Värttö.
A key part of the work was the futures process, consisting of three futures
workshops implemented
as teamwork and two online questionnaires. A total of
160 people from industry, the authorities, research
institutes, universities,
politics and associations took part in the futures workshops, and
132
responded to the questionnaires.
The process arrived at four future scenarios in order to describe various
development alternatives.
Based on these and other background work, the
Finnish Energy Industries created a picture of the desired,
goal-oriented
development path until 2050, which is described in this report.
The following reports were also produced as a result of the groundwork:
- The end report of the futures process of the Finnish Energy Industries:
Energy scenarios until
2050; A review of the energy sector’s challenges,
opportunities and means of influencing,
Finland Futures Research Centre of
the Turku School of Economics
- Finnish Energy Industries — Energy Scenarios and Visions for the
Future,
Finland Futures Research Centre of the Turku School of Economics
- The role of electricity and district heat in energy efficiency and energy
saving,
Lappeenranta University of Technology and Tampere University of
Technology
The reports are available on the Finnish Energy Industries website at http://www.energia.fi/.
We want to extend our thanks to all those who took part in the project,
especially the research groups
of universities for their indispensable
contribution to the work.
Helsinki, 12 November 2009
Finnish Energy Industries
Kari
Rämö Juha
Naukkarinen
Chairman of the
Board Managing
Director