SOLVED - Cleantech Finland’s stakeholder magazine 1/2012

Cleantech Finland’s stakeholder magazine 1/2012

Great

opportunities lie ahead

Alexander Stubb

Pekka Haavisto

Christopher hoffmann

Finland’s brand relies on problem solving and green technology

A peacemaker with green values

Investors are optimistic about green IT business

Contents

solved 2012

4 city living 6 Cutting back on CO2STS 12 3 X Q&A

Problem. Solved.

15 Alexander Stubb: For the good of everyone

During the past year we at Cleantech Finland have spent weeks thinking of new ways to link the expertise of our network with global demand. We wanted to find the best people and success cases and share those stories. We wanted to shift away from talking about problems to solving them.

The magazine title Solved stands for challenges that cleantech experts have already helped to meet.

This expertise will have even more value in the future.

Cleantech thinking and know-how will be embedded in various industries and areas of life. The fastest are already there, many start-ups and industry giants have already seized the cleantech mentality. Cleantech investor Christopher Hoffman sees it clearly: “Sustainable development is no longer being promoted for ideological reasons… It’s sensible for economic reasons as well.”

Open-mindedness, boldness and visions are needed for sure. Our guest columnist Alexander Stubb puts it like this; “No business can be successful with a ‘Let’s see what happens’ attitude.” In this Solved issue we will stretch and test the boundaries and dimensions of cleantech.

And the answer to our first question: how to link Finnish expertise and global cleantech demand? In January 2012 Cleantech Finland launched the Solved expert service that offers you access to leading cleantech experts. It is easy, fun and interactive! So sign up, spread the word and start using Solved!

16 spotlight: Forest, Water and Solar Energy

santtu hulkkonen

Executive Director, Cleantech Finland

olved.fi began solving 22 S the world’s environmental problems 26 GreenStream in China: Trust leads to business 32 fruitful breeding ground for start-ups 34 Gazing for tomorrow hristopher hoffman: 36 c Traditional strengths on the rise 40 Pekka Haavisto: The environment plays many roles in global conflicts 44 Trendpulse 46 The companies have solutions for energy problems in India 53 Ron Pernick: Clean tech: Defining a revolution ign up! Ready to meet 54 S the public? hinking out of 56 t the box in finland

Solved is Cleantech Finland’s first stakeholder magazine Publisher: Cleantech Finland/Finpro Editor-in-Chief: Janica Johansson/Cleantech Finland Editorial Staff and Layout: Pohjoisranta Burson-Marsteller Cover: Elina Minn Print: Erweko Paper: Cocoon offset 300g and 140 g ISSN 2242-8259 Cleantech Finland ® is a network of top cleantech experts.

We link Finnish Cleantech expertise with global demand. Problem solving is in our nature.

s o lv e d | 3

text tuul a lehto Pho t o cl e a n t e ch f i n l a n d

City living In today’s world, nearly 180.000 people move into cities each day.

In developing countries this means 60 million new urban inhabitants every year. More than half of the world’s population already lives in cities. We are facing increasing demands for energy, water, food and waste systems. Pollution, smog, homelessness and slums are challenges that face urban living all over the world.

Cities today are in a situation in which we have to make tough decisions regarding how to solve the problems of urbanization.

This means quickly rethinking ideas for energy capability, waste systems and, in particular, living and construction conditions. In order to succeed in this area, we need the political will to make the world a better place for all of us to live in.

4 | s o lv e d

s o lv e d | 5

t e x t j u k k a hol opa i n e n

Cutting back on

Global giants and innovative ICT companies are tackling energy challenges with a wide array of solutions. Energy efficient production solutions allow companies to save large sums of money.

energy

6 | s o lv e d

green ict

Traditional industry

Data shows your energy use

The bioenergy pioneer

Accurate information about consumption and the potential for savings that exists in energy costs usually lead to a reduction in overall energy consumption. This is why the customers of energy companies now want access to more refined data about their energy use. This is accelerating system development in the energy industry – and creating new opportunities for companies that specialize in green technology.

One of the green ICT companies that have seized the opportunity opened up by the changing energy markets is Process Vision, a leading provider of energy IT systems in Scandinavia and Central Europe. The Helsinki-based company, founded in 1993, is dedicated to developing and supplying business critical IT systems to liberalized energy markets. Its customers range from international power exchanges and national system operators to local energy retailers and network operators.

Process Vision has managed to build a product portfolio that offers effective solutions for all energy data management needs, regardless of the customer’s market role or utility. Most of its clients are large energy companies.

One of the clients is E.ON Elnät Sverige. In January 2012, it signed an agreement with Process Vision concerning the delivery of an energy IT system for meter data management and balance settlement based on Process Vision’s GENERIS product. The Swedish legislation has recently changed so that customers can even be offered hourly electricity readings. The background for the legislation change is an EU directive for increased energy efficiency and, as a result, reduced CO2 emissions. Process Vision’s GENERIS system has functions for handling energy information based on readings in hourly or even shorter intervals.

Many traditional industrial companies have not settled for simply adapting to the requirements of sustainable development. They have seized the opportunities offered by a changing world and transformed themselves into more environmentally friendly pioneers in the technology business.

The strategy of the Metso engineering and technology corporation states that environmentally effective solutions are not a separate business for the company but a natural part of comprehensive solutions derived from customer needs. Stricter environmental legislation opened the doors to new business – the fact that customer companies need innovative solutions to meet tougher emissions requirements gives Metso more opportunities to deliver them.

In addition to environmental legislation, the market is governed by the price development of energy. Since energy seems to be getting more expensive all the time, Metso’s customer companies want to ensure that the required energy is produced as frugally and efficiently as possible.

As the requirements concerning sustainable development increase, cleantech will in the future be more about developing solutions for efficient use of raw materials. In this sense, an important role will be played by process automation, in which Metso helps its industrial customers save production investments and reduce waste by making processes more effective. Metso has also benefited from the fact that many countries have set a goal of increasing their use of renewable energy sources.

This goal supports demand for the company’s power plant solutions, which are based on utilizing biomass and waste.

A good example of Metso’s bioenergy competence can be found in south-west France. In October 2010, a combined biomass heat and power plant utilizing Metso’s latest technology was commissioned at the Smurfit Kappa paper factory. The plant is one of the largest of its kind in Europe. The fuel consists of bark obtained as a by-product of the mill and forest residues from the

The heat is already on

The ThereGate solution has solved a consumer problem related to unnecessary energy use that occurs when people are not at home or at a summer cottage. Cooperation

s o lv e d | 7

related to products from other companies has resulted in a functional solution to meet the challenges of home heating and energy use. Smart meters improve the efficiency of energy use while simultaneously giving people more control and comfort.

For example, the product applications can be used to lower the temperature of a cottage or second home when the residents are not there. The temperature can also be conveniently increased by means of a mobile phone or PC.

surrounding area, the collection of which has created new jobs for inhabitants of the region. Dust and nitrous oxide emissions are significantly lower than those from the plant’s old grate boiler plant.

The plant produces steam for the mill and electricity for the national grid. This is the largest investment in France’s national green energy program. Metso supplied the plant with process systems for everything from fuel handling and the boiler to flue-gas cleaning, as well as automation for the entire power plant.

traffic

Controlling traffic and transport emissions

8 | s o lv e d

Traffic and logistics are an instrumental part of society, but they also have major impacts on the environment. For example, about one-fifth of Finland’s carbon dioxide emissions come from traffic. European Commission calculations indicate that greener technology can reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from traffic by approximately 26%.

green ict

Traditional industry

Sharing makes it greener

The ships in greener oceans

Emissions from driving can be decreased in many ways. One effective method that often gains little notice is sharing rides.

The business idea of the Finnish company GreenRiders is based on the observation that there are more than 500 million private cars in the world and one car carries an average of 1.5 people. Why don’t drivers give the empty seats in their cars to people who need them?

GreenRiders is an open ecosystem that provides an effective, fun, and socially rewarding service to help users decrease the amount of carbon emissions created through personal transportation. The core of GreenRiders is an online and mobile solution that makes it simple and easy to share car rides in private vehicles, taxis, and rental cars.

The service is free of charge to ordinary users. For companies, GreenRiders provides an effective means of saving on travel costs and reducing the carbon footprint.

The GreenRiders service is active in Finland, and the company is working on its first international pilots.

Like Metso, Wärtsilä, which produces traditional power solutions for maritime and energy markets, has turned the energy efficiency of its products into a key competitive edge. The energy efficiency business is based on tougher international environmental requirements and recommendations, but the competitiveness of Wärtsilä’s products lies in the fact that, along with providing environmental benefits, they also save money and resources for the customer companies. At the same time, the company helps its customers act in a more responsible manner.

Wärtsilä defines its main target as the delivery of power solutions with high efficiency and low environmental burden. The company’s strengths include energy-efficient diesel and gas engines for ships and power plants as well as products to reduce oil dependency.

A good example of Wärtsilä’s competence is the modification work being performed on the MSV Fennica and MSV Nordica multipurpose icebreakers during early 2012. The catalysers that Wärtsilä is supplying for the ships owned by Arctia Offshore will significantly reduce the amount of nitrous oxide emissions, which are harmful to people and the environment. Wärtsilä is also responsible for the modification work being performed on the ships’ eight main engines, which will enable the use of ultra-low sulphur fuel in the engines.

After the modifications are completed, the vessels will meet the emissions requirements of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for ships operating in the Arctic Ocean. These environmentally friendly icebreakers make it possible for Arctia Offshore to participate in arctic oil exploration projects in the future.

Control your travels

The Finnish company Satel produces smart radio modems for traffic solutions, which make long-term and realtime control of public transport possible. For example, the modems are used in systems that provide public transport with the right of way at intersections with traffic lights. Thus, buses spend less time standing at intersections, which in turn decreases total travel time, fuel consumption and emissions.

The radio modem can also be used to display the arrival time of the next vehicle to people waiting at the stop. Statistics provided by the automatic systems can be used to plan more detailed routes and timetables.

Data about the number and location of vehicles can be used to remotely change traffic sign settings and provide information about empty parking places in parking lots or halls on displays at the entrance, which reduces unnecessary driving in urban areas.

www.processvision.fi www.therecorporation.com www.metso.com www.greenriders.com www.satel.com www.wartsila.com

Sources: The websites of the companies mentioned in the article, Wärtsilä’s annual report 2011, Metso’s annual report 2010 and 2011, the March 10, 2011 and October 27, 2011 editions of Talouselämä magazine.

10 | s o lv e d

Towards Solar Economy

The world is full of inexhaustible, renewable and emissions free energy originating from the sun. We are continuously developing smarter energy production based on the sun: solar power and heat, bio- and geothermal energy and hydro, wave and wind power.

Our vision of the future energy system has a name - Solar Economy.

www.fortum.com

t e x t t i i na n u r m i Pho t o s K A RL VIL H JA LM S SON

Tuuli Mäkelä

3

advisor, climate policy and green economy, confederation of finnish industries

Is cleantech an altruistic ideology or a business?

Can businesses really help to reduce the effects of climate change?

What is the significance of the individual in combating climate change?

www.ek.fi www.theswitch.com www.wwf.fi

12 | s o lv e d

Cleantech is a business just like any other.

To succeed, cleantech companies need to fulfill the same conditions as other businesses: having a good innovation and investment environment, receiving sufficient funding and working among fair competition. On the other hand, cleantech can help to solve large-scale global problems, for example, by slowing down climate change. It can lead to energy and material efficiency that can help save money and the environment.

Absolutely! It is from enterprises that the practical solutions come. To fight climate change we need new low-emissions, energy-efficient solutions, which are economically viable and which spread globally. It is also important to remember that businesses are the main financers of climate innovations by investing in clean products, technologies and production processes.

Environmentally conscious consumers can challenge companies to develop solutions with lower emissions and higher energy efficiency.

However, the truth is that price is still a decisive factor in the purchase decision. This is why cleantech alternatives must be competitive in both quality and price. I am fascinated by the idea of “cooltech”, i.e. offering consumers the ability to make a smart choice that can save both the environment and the buyer’s money.

Hanna-Liisa Kangas

Jussi Vanhanen

director of sales and marketing, the switch

In the last 20 years, the cleantech sector has grown into a major global industry and employer, and it is still growing. The scale of the global market for climate technology is reflected in the fact that in 2011, 40 GW of wind power technology was installed worldwide, corresponding to revenues of EUR 60 billion. Finland accounted for some EUR 1-2 billion of this.

The choice of energy generation forms is one of our greatest opportunities for affecting climate change. Reducing global carbon dioxide emissions is crucial in preventing global warming, and research has shown that wind power, for example, is a completely carbon-neutral energy form.

Companies can help abate climate change not only by bringing out technological innovations, but also by making smart choices in their own operations.

The consumer’s attitude and choices are decisive.

As consumers’ interest in climate issues grows, so do their expectations and their demand for clean technology products and solutions.

This creates a natural basis for supply.

climate coordinator, wwf finland

Cleantech is primarily a business. Political decision-makers can easily facilitate the development, production and commissioning of clean technology. This can be done by supporting the R&D sector and by creating a market for clean technology solutions through properly targeted aids and taxation. Some things that are currently needed are commercialization and extensive adoption of renewable energy technology.

Optimally, cleantech supports the aims of environmental protection; a climate-neutral economy cannot be fulfilled without cleantech, but neither can it rely just on cleantech.

It is the task of enterprises to develop and adopt solutions that either reduce climate change or help us to adapt to it. Clean technology solutions should also holistically take into account other environmental aspects, beyond climate. The companies operate in conditions determined by environmental and financial policy, and their primary goal is to make a profit. It is the task of politicians to create an encouraging operating environment and to set the boundaries for responsibility.

Naturally, all of us as consumers are responsible for our own choices. On the other hand, political decision-making and the supply that is generated determine the choices that are available, so the responsibility is spread throughout the society.

Finland has one of the largest carbon footprints per citizen. Therefore reducing our environmental impact is important for the climate.

s o lv e d | 13

Our clients make the world safer and cleaner. www.gaia.fi

Sustainability is new business and investment opportunities, long-term strategies and the right every-day choices. We deliver measurable results, and turn sustainability into your success.

Gaia offers tailored and innovative solutions for: Energy & Climate Environment & Sustainability Cleantech, Innovation & Finance Safety & Risk Management

Addis Abeba I Beijing I Buenos Aires I Geneva I Helsinki I Turku I Z端rich

W

hen construction of internal EU markets began 25 years ago, it provided an economic boost to the entire continent. We need the same kind of boost now, and I believe that it will come from two sectors: internal digital markets and the green economy.

I believe that technology can solve many global problems. I don’t see any other option to meeting the challenges of continuing population growth and increased use of natural resources. Regardless of whether we’re talking about renewable forms of energy, lower emissions, clean water, or recycling of raw materials, technology is always involved in some way.

Emerging economies have the same requirements concerning well-being as western market economies.

Cleantech is the business of the future, and it will help us solve the problems of growing economies, such as making the mining industry cleaner in Mongolia and offering environmentally friendly solutions in India.

The Finland brand was primarily built on the foundation of Nokia and the IT boom of past years. The most important elements of the renewed country brand are problem solving and clean technology, especially our expertise in water purification. Although our competence is strong, we have been too modest in marketing it so far.

For example, Denmark has built its cleantech brand in a better and more systematic manner.

In my mind, cleantech combines three things: traditional large-scale industry, modern technology expertise, and start-up entrepreneurship. As a concept, cleantech is hard to resist - it would be like resisting peace.

This is why companies should also brand themselves as

illustration: helmi sirola

for the good of everyone

cleantech companies - as long as they can back this up with real substance.

My understanding of clean technology has developed through the export promotion trips that I have led.

Arranged about once a month, these trips have at best included dozens of companies. Cleantech companies have been a part of nearly every delegation. Ninety percent of the markets for Finnish cleantech companies are outside our country.

No business can be successful with a “Let’s see what happens” attitude. Companies and their management need to be daring. They have to be ready to grab opportunities and agile enough to make a move at the right time. This is the kind of open-minded spirit I have seen in start-up companies.

During my export promotion trips, I’ve been delighted to notice that company representatives have learned more about international sales and marketing.

They are able to pitch their company in an understandable and attractive manner in just one minute. This is a very necessary skill, because corporate marketing is impossible while staring at one’s own feet.

Finland already has risk takers, but I would like to see even more boldness, attitude, self-confidence, and aggressiveness – more of an Angry Birds approach.

We shouldn’t limit ourselves to the Finnish, Nordic, or European markets – let’s take on the whole world!

Alexander Stubb Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade

s o lv e d | 15

light from the shadow In many parts of the Northern hemisphere the sun is a rarity during the long winter months. In the summer time the situation turns upside down and the northern parts are able to enjoy the midnight sun. In the future the 24-hour sunshine will offer many opportunities to solar energy companies. Our energy consumption is growing at an increasing and ecologically unsustainable rate here in the North as well as other parts of the globe. New methods of energy production are needed in order to safeguard access to energy in the future.

One solution can be found in the sun.

As an endless resource, solar power is suited to both large and small-scale production.

In just 1.5 hours, the sun transmits as much energy to the Earth as the whole planet uses in one year.

Solar technology has advanced in the last three years and its implementation has become cheaper, making the cost of solar power competitive. Partly thanks to tariffs that support solar energy, overall solar power generation reached a record level of 67 gigawatts in 2011.

This has also inspired large and small companies to think innovatively about solar. www.suntrica.com www.fortum.com www.savosolar.fi

t e x t e e va aho t u pa

16 | s o lv e d

SPOTLIGHT

Photovoltaic energy systems will play a growing role in the renewable energy sector worldwide.

Government policies have caused certain disparity between the markets, but in the long run the market economy and ever increasing cost of fossile fuels will create new business opportunities for solar.

Jouko H채yrynen, CEO, Suntrica Ltd.

s o lv e d | 17

Review the forest The world’s forests absorb carbon dioxide emissions and thereby slow down climate change. Forests are being protected from excessive logging and clearing, and sustainable ways are being sought for utilizing wood as a renewable resource. The acceleration of forest growth and renewal in the northern hemisphere brought on by climate change brings new opportunities for different and surprising uses of wood.

The biorefinery industry is growing strongly all around the world. Highquality biofuel is already produced from Finland’s generous forest resources and from by-products of the wood industry such as top refuse and stumps. Innovative new applications can open doors even in new sectors such as the food industry and electronics. Nano pulp applications have already begun to be used in the fashion industry as a replacement for cotton. www.forchem.com www.nesteoil.com www.upm.com

t e x t t i i na n u r m i

18 | s o lv e d

SPOTLIGHT

The forest gives us cosmetics, medicines and clothes. Micro pulp is used in laptop screens. Our interest in the wild outdoors inspires us to come up with novel experiences, services and products.

Niko Herlin , Finpro Foresight Team Leader

s o lv e d | 19

thirst for water To survive, humans need pure, fresh water, which only makes up 2.5 percent of all the water resources on Earth – and only one percent of the freshwater resources can be directly used as they are. As the population grows, there will be a 40 percent disparity between water supply and demand by 2030.

There are three ways to tackle the urgent water problems in the world: recycling existing water more efficiently, using industrial processes and communal water resource management; increasing the efficiency of rainwater collection; and developing ways of turning unusable water into usable, for example, through desalination. Increasingly innovative approaches are needed in order to develop financially viable and ecologically sustainable solutions for each of these methods. www.kemira.com www.pacs.fi www.poyry.com

text tuul a lehto

20 | s o lv e d

SPOTLIGHT

For example, desalination faces the challenge of needing a great deal of energy, which makes the process expensive and increases its carbon footprint. In China we have increased the profitability of desalination by combining local membrane technology with the correct type of chemistry.

Kaj Jansson, VP of R&D and Technology, Kemira

s o lv e d | 21

solved.fi began solving the world’s environmental problems t e x t ja n i t i mon e n, t i i na n u r m i Pho t o s K A RL VIL H JA LM S SON

Cleantech Finland launched its SOLVED expert service in early 2012. SOLVED brings together the best cleantech experts in the business. The goal is to combine Finnish problem-solving skills and technology expertise to meet the environmental challenges facing the world.

The ability to solve problems is part of the Finnish identity. We have the proof, readiness to cooperate, and a natural desire to do things as well as possible. The SOLVED service combines this hardworking attitude and Finnish competence into an easily approachable concept,” explains Santtu Hulkkonen, Cleantech Finland’s Executive Director.

The service provides everyone with the opportunity to ask questions, discuss and network with cleantech experts. It includes more than one hundred experts who are ready to solve problems and discuss solutions. Hundreds of people around the world have used the service during its very first months of operation.

“SOLVED wants to be the world’s leading cleantech community. We can effectively channel Finnish competence to meet global demand. Together we can achieve big things,” Hulkkonen says.

In addition to the discussions revolving around problems and solutions to them, the website offers up-to-date news and blogs. It also includes a list of major cleantech events, where many of the SOLVED experts will be present.

22 | s o lv e d

Kaisa Junkkonen

antoine mialon

Landscape Architect, Eriksson Architects Ltd.

researcher, metgen oy

Kaisa Junkkonen is a landscape architect specializing in community planning according to the principles of sustainable development. Her expertise especially lies in environmentally efficient regional planning. The planning process must take into account of energy issues, low emissions, ecosystems and the quality of the living environment, among other things.

“How can the community structure be developed so that it would encourage a more sustainable and ecological lifestyle? This is one of the challenges to which I would love to find a solution.”

Junkkonen’s passion is driven by the desire to attenuate climate change and to create a more sustainable community.

Other sources of inspiration in challenging problem-solving situations are examples of successful projects and a good team spirit between operators. Junkkonen considers the strengths of Finnish cleantech to be the high caliber of education and research in the field and the companies offering top-level expertise and technology.

Antoine Mialon works as a researcher and develops cleantech enzymatic solutions for industrial processes. He focuses on developing the use of enzymes that replace traditional polluting agents, reduce energy use and increase yields in a sustainable way. His current fields of interest are waste water management, clean processes and materials, biofuels, and pulp and paper. Mialon’s passions are research, discovery, system comprehension, adaptation and problem-solving.

“Many challenges still have to be solved but a major one is the difficulty that people from diverse fields and different generations have in understanding and trusting each other.”

Antoine Mialon’s major motivation factor is the exploration of the unknown in enzyme science. Another source of inspiration is the development and adaptation of enzymes to the customers’ needs. He is excited by the challenge applying modern and clean methods to traditional profitable processes in order to merge and produce win-win cases for both MetGen and its customers. www.metgen.fi

www.eriarc.fi

s o lv e d | 23

risto kosonen halton, director of halton technology center

In his work, Risto Kosonen solves challenges mainly related to the inner workings of buildings. His primary goal is to produce enjoyable, healthy and productive indoor conditions in buildings, in an energy-efficient way. His passion is for improving the quality of the indoor environment in zero-energy buildings and for developing challenging solutions for the international market.

“My aim is to find a solution for how good conditions and efficient energy use can be guaranteed throughout the life cycle of a sustainable building.”

In the SOLVED service, Kosonen is happy to share expertise on issues related to energy efficiency and indoor environments in buildings. He is looking forward to interesting discussions and the opportunity to share experiences and best practices through the web service. www.halton.com

harri eerola ruukki, application expert

Harri Eerola’s work focuses on researching new construction technologies and related business opportunities. Currently, his emphasis is especially on solar power and its integration into energy-efficient construction. The growing possibilities and potential of solar power in energy generation and construction are the objects of Eerola’s passion.

Eerola believes that SOLVED will help him, especially if he needs information from outside his own areas of expertise.

24 | s o lv e d

“Networking has a great significance, because technologies are advancing and developing swiftly. I believe that the network will help me stay up to date.”

Eerola’s dream is that sometime in the future a building can be cost-effectively built and efficiently utilize new energy sources – especially solar power. In addition to this goal, Eerola is motivated by working on new things, finding new opportunities and refining them into tailored customer solutions. www.ruukki.com

Download your free copy of Clean Energy Trends 2012 by the research and publishing firm Clean Edge, Inc. Simply visit www.cleanedge.com to get your copy of this year’s incisive and informative report.

CLEAN ENERGY TRENDS 2012

BY AND AND

NICK RON PER ILDER CLINT W WINNIE TREVOR 2 MA RCH 201

Find out why Clean Edge and its reports have been cited by leading media outlets including Associated Press, CBS Marketplace, Financial Times, Forbes, Fortune Small Business, The New York Times, Reuters, Time Magazine, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired.

Clean Edge, Inc., founded in 2000, is the world’s first research and advisory firm devoted to the clean-tech sector. For more than a decade, the firm has delivered timely data, expert analysis, and comprehensive insights to key industry stakeholders. Clean Edge, with offices in the San Francisco Bay Area and Portland, Oregon, offers an unparalleled suite of index, benchmarking, and advisory services.

Visit www.cleanedge.com or email us at info@cleanedge.com to learn more about how we can help.

T H E

C L E A N - T E C H

M A R K E T A U T H O R I T Y

26 | s o lv e d

Trust leads

to

business GreenStream, which specializes in managing and financing cleantech projects, has succeeded in gaining a strong foothold in China’s rapidly growing market. t e x t j u k k a hol opa i n e n pho t o s gr e e n st r e a m

T

echnology can’t change the world if nobody ever uses it. On the other hand, politics can’t change anything in today’s world without being linked to economic values.”

This is how GreenStream Network’s executive chairman of the board Jussi Nykänen, who is also one of the three founding shareholders, sums up the idea that inspired them to establish the company.

The idea directed Nykänen’s thoughts to emissions trading “Emissions trading is a tool that makes cleantech measurable in terms of money and turns carbon dioxide into euros. And money is a unit of measurement that companies understand.”

GreenStream was founded in 2001, and right from the start it concentrated on emissions trading issues. The company marketed green certificates to begin with, but advisory services were soon added to the offering.

“About six years ago, we moved forward in the value chain by establishing funds that acquire emission reduction units. We try to find financing solutions for projects that reduce emissions.”

s o lv e d | 27

A huge market for cleantech

GreenStream rapidly expanded its operations outside Finland, and China came into the picture five years ago.

“Now business in China is going so well that nearly all our resources are tied up there,” says Nykänen.

There are many reasons for this. The Chinese economy is growing at an annual rate of 7-8%. The need for energy is also increasing, and the infrastructure that produces it is in a state of constant change.

“The Chinese favor clean technology now because they have no choice – the environmental problems are really massive. For example, the air quality in Beijing is at times so bad that flights to that city have to be cancelled.

In some regions, the local water can’t even be used as a raw material for industrial plants.”

The current volume of cleantech in China is estimated to be between 200 billion and 1 trillion. China wants to be the world leader in the clean energy sector.

“China has set clear targets for energy efficiency and environmental issues, which also have to be achieved.

There is a direct connection between meeting these targets and the career development of provincial leaders. This is why the provinces actually seem to be competing with each other regarding who is the first to implement the use of clean technology.

At this point in time, China is making preparations for its own national emissions trading market. Nykänen believes that this will also provide plenty of business opportunities for reliable western cleantech companies.

A bridge between Europe and China

GreenStream’s core task is to find money for projects that reduce emissions. In recent years, the clearest source of financing has been emissions trading, an area in which the company serves as a bridge between western countries and China. In China the company looks for good projects that reduce emissions, and then ensures that the projects can

28 | s o lv e d

be officially approved as emissions reduction projects.

“For example, a wind power project has to first be approved by the Chinese officials, then by an external quality monitoring organization, then at the UN level and finally in the purchasing country. Our competence involves obtaining approval from all these parties. We ensure that the materials are in order and that everyone agrees on the functionality of the project. Once a project is approved, we verify how much emissions are reduced as a result of the project.”

In Europe, GreenStream manages funds in which the investors include companies operating in the Finnish energy industry. The companies invest in the funds in order to obtain inexpensive emission reduction units from China.

“Our four emissions reduction funds currently hold

china has set clear targets for energy efficiency and environmental issues.

Ningxia Federal Solar Cooker Project Thanks to solar cookers financed by the Finnish government, farmers across Xiji county in north-western China can breathe more easily and spend less time cooking and cleaning. With clean, free energy replacing dirty and costly coal and a local solar cooker factory offering jobs, these low income rural families can afford to send more children to school.

The project reduces greenhouse gas emissions by switching from dirty coal to clean solar power. The emission reductions are sold to Finland through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and used to help Finland meet its national emission target.

Key benefits: Global greenhouse gas emission reductions Improved outdoor air quality in local communities Employment opportunities for local communities Time and cost savings for participating households Improved indoor air quality in participating households Health benefits, particularly for women and children

s o lv e d | 29

People in China believe that reliability is a built-in feature of all Finnish companies approximately EUR 140 million. The money is invested in emissions reduction projects in countries like China.

In practice, we make sure that European companies meet their EU emissions trading targets in the most costeffective manner.”

Some of the projects are also part of the Government of Finland’s emissions reduction portfolio. GreenStream is responsible for ensuring that they are approved as official emissions reduction projects.

“The projects are by nature such that joining them now means that the income will only be realized in several years. The process of obtaining approval takes an average of two years in itself. This phase requires a lot of care, because the documentation has to be very accurate.”

GreenStream currently has more than 60 projects in different sectors of the Chinese technology industry. Its customers include the largest Chinese energy companies, which have an energy production capacity that is more or less equivalent to the combined output of all the Nordic countries.

“When we began in China, the project proposals that we received often included small hydropower, but recently they have shifted in the direction of wind power.

At this time, we manage wind power projects totaling more than one thousand megawatts. Solar energy and energy efficiency have also become more prevalent.”

Partner network opened the doors

But how in the world did a small Finnish company manage to get a foothold in the huge Chinese market?

“The first year was all about practice. We didn’t know how to operate in China and we were unable to make progress with our partner at that time,” admits Nykänen.

He believes that commitment and determination are key factors when entering the Chinese market.

“A company won’t get far by sending a single person to investigate opportunities in Beijing. We soon noticed that it’s impossible to grow in China without sufficient investments.”

Three years ago, GreenStream decided to invest in

30 | s o lv e d

China in a big way. It looked for a more suitable partner with the help of FECC (Finnish Environmental Cluster for China).

“Even with a new partner, the beginning involved some really tough legwork. We traveled to China all the time. The first six months could be described as the headache phase, and it seemed like we just couldn’t understand each other. However, after that things started to improve. We signed our first contracts with big energy producers and this had a snowball effect. Now companies know and trust us.”

Nykänen says that one of the most important success factors was the fact that GreenStream’s Chinese partner was already networked with the right players.

“The market also contains opportunists that are only interested in making a quick profit. One partner candidate wanted to propose a production plant as a project, although they actually had nothing to do with the plant in question. Serious Chinese actors don’t operate in this manner, because they don’t want to lose face in the eyes of their own network. This is why the product offered to the network has to be of good quality.”

Nykänen is grateful for the help provided by Cleantech Finland and the Finnish authorities.

“A couple of years ago we were at an event attended by the President of Finland and Vice Premier of China, and had our picture taken with them. This had a lot of value in the Chinese market and gave us a lot more credibility, which is essential to being successful in China.

It demonstrated that we had reached the level at which important Chinese actors were ready to cooperate with us.

Finns are considered trustworthy

According to Nykänen, Finns and Nordic companies have a reputation for reliability in China.

“People in China believe that reliability is a built-in feature of all Finnish companies – and there is some truth in that concept.”

However, he also mentions that trust has to be earned. Partners stick together in tough times, too.

“Openness is essential. The Chinese understand if something doesn’t work, but they don’t understand if nobody tries to improve the situation. It’s important to work towards the common goal all the time.”

www.greenstream.com

t e x t m a i ja l a a k so i l lu st r at ion ELINA MINN

There are plenty of flourishing start-ups in Finland, where the conditions for clean technology start-up creation are one of the best in the world.

This is now confirmed by the first Global Cleantech Innovation Index.

T

he Global Cleantech Innovation Index 2012, Cleantech Group and WWF looks at where entrepreneurial cleantech companies are growing today, reasons as to where they will spring up over the coming years, and which countries are falling above and below the curve for fostering cleantech innovation.

Thirty-eight countries were evaluated on fifteen indicators related to the creation and commercialization of cleantech start-ups, generating an index measuring each one’s potential, relative to their economic size, to produce entrepreneurial cleantech start-up companies and commercialize clean technology innovations over the next 10 years.

32 | s o lv e d

MetGen

Numcore

Finland

Finland

MetGen is developing and producing oxidase enzymes called Laccases.

We don’t really understand what that is but we do listen carefully when they tell us that these enzymes can achieve a 15–20% reduction of the energy consumption for wood pre-treatment in pulp and paper mills, as only one of many promising applications.

Having a frothing problem?

Who you gonna call?

Numcore creates a 3D-image of the flotation cell and accurately measures stiffness and thickness of the froth via conductivity measurements. This enables automatic control of froth properties leading to a significant increase in recovery.

www.metgen.com

www.numcore.com

Pegasor

Ultranat

Finland

Finland

Pegasor makes a sensors for continuous measurements of fine particles in air. Pegasor is the only company currently producing such a sensor. This is an excellent position as the sensor will be required by law in all new vehicles, both in the EU and the US, within two years. This will open up a market of 10-15 million sensors each year for Pegasor.

Turning waste into value is the ultimate cleantech dream and this is really what Ultranat does. Ultranat makes use of ashes from biofuel power plants and turns this ash into valuable nutrition and fertilizers.

The only thing left is purified silicates that can be used for several industry applications.

www.ultranat.fi

www.pegasor.com

Nordic Cleantech Open is a business competition aimed at identifying, upgrading and highlighting 25 of the most promising cleantech companies in Scandinavia.

The second annual Nordic Cleantech Open had a record 97 applicants.

Among them were companies that provide solutions for new, developing fields as well as those that improve the competitiveness of existing industries.

Another four Finnish companies were ranked in the top 25 companies

Asema www.asema.com Ekolite www.ekolite.fi Enercomp www.enercomp.fi Enevo www.enevo.com

s o lv e d | 33

GAZING at tomorrow The ecocity of the future is a city designed with consideration for environmental impact. The people who live there are dedicated to minimizing energy and water use as well as reducing waste.

An ecocity is at harmony with nature and a quiet atmosphere is the basis for its design.

The glass facades and height of the buildings will allow for long views, while organic shapes and pure colors create the perfect setting for a comfortable and peaceful lifestyle. www.eriarc.fi

34 | s o lv e d

Pho t o e r i k s son a rch i t e ct s

s o lv e d | 35

t e x t m at t i r e m e s Pho t o s RIKU ISOHELLA

Traditional

strengths on the rise According to Zouk Capital’s Principal Christopher Hoffmann, IT solutions that improve energy efficiency and biomass utilization are the hottest clean technology trends in Finland right now.

36 | s o lv e d

I

n the eyes of capital investors, Finland’s clean technology market is small but extremely interesting. London-based Zouk Capital is looking for investment targets in areas where Finnish competence has traditionally been strong.

“For example, the IT sector has applications to improve energy efficiency.

Solid experience in the forest industry also provides a good foundation for developing new innovations in biomass utilization,” lists Hoffmann.

Clean technology has become a popular target for capital investors all over the world.

“The fact that sustainable development is no longer being promoted for ideological reasons alone has also increased interest. Today, it’s sensible for economic reasons as well.”

Energy efficiency is the

hottest investment target

The uncertain economic situation is, however, casting a shadow on the prospects for clean technology markets. According to Hoffmann, this is most evident in sectors where growth has been accelerated through public subsidies. Good examples of this are solar and wind power and biofuels.

“Of course, these sectors still have interesting companies, but the majority of capital investors have shifted their focus elsewhere.”

Investors are now keeping a particularly sharp eye on growth companies that develop solutions for more efficient use of energy.

“This covers quite a large number of sectors, including new materials to improve building insulation, air condition, heating, lighting, and the software associated with all of these applications.”

s o lv e d | 37

An investor can provide support by bringing in its own international network.

38 | s o lv e d

Another area that is high on investors’ lists is so-called smart electricity grids, which means the combination of information and communications technology with electricity production and distribution.

“This area is producing new business ideas and companies at a fast pace. A similar growth sector is electric vehicles.”

Rather than concentrating on electric vehicle plants that require billions in investments, capital investors are looking for companies that specialize in specific sub-areas.

According to Hoffmann, these include companies that develop electric engines, batteries, and software to control electricity consumption.

“Another interesting area is companies that develop business models related to electric vehicle maintenance, charging networks, and joint car use.”

Getting more out of decreasing

According to Hoffmann, Europe’s retention of its position as the market leader is not self-evident.

The clean technology market in the United States is growing fast, and new innovations are being aggressively commercialized there.

“Asian countries are also shifting their focus to sustainable development, because they have to find solutions to the monumental challenges associated with energy, water, and pollution. China and South Korea are already strong players in solar energy technology.”

Until now, Asia has mainly utilized clean technology imported from other countries. However, investors are keeping a close watch on the development of innovation activities on that continent. The investments being made are huge. The fact that Chinese investors in particular are now actively looking for investment targets in western countries is another sign of how Asia is stepping to the forefront of the industry.

natural resources

Hoffmann emphasizes that, along with conserving energy, more efficient use of other raw materials is a clear growth sector.

“Production processes can be improved so that we get more out of metals, wood, and other natural resources.

New solutions for more efficient water use are another key area, regardless of whether it involves closed industrial water circulation or an agricultural watering system that wastes less water.”

In place of municipal water processing, Hoffmann emphasizes the importance of innovations to improve water treatment and water use.

“Until now, industry has focused too little attention on these issues. However, this is changing because water is becoming a more expensive raw material. Customers are also starting to demand that these matters be considered.”

Europe may lose its lead

Europe has been a pioneer in clean technology so far.

“The consumers and companies here in Europe are environmentally aware. Traditional technical competence and public regulation and subsidy policy have also promoted this issue.”

The ability to commercialize good ideas is essential

A good innovation and business model are not enough for capital investors. Companies also need to know how to commercialize them in constantly changing markets.

“A company has to have the skills needed to network with the right partners and market their products. In this sense, the competence of the company management is decisive. An investor can provide support by bringing in its own international network.”

In a small country like Finland, international capital investors focus on finding companies that have the chance to break through in the global market.

“We’re interested in products and services that can be cost-effectively scaled for large markets.

Zouk Capital is looking for growth companies that are already well on their way. At this time, it doesn’t have any investments in Finland, but the search is on.

“We’re paying particularly close attention to clean technology companies. We want to create a close cooperation network with companies and other investors in Finland.”

s o lv e d | 39

The

environment plays many roles in global conflicts

t ex t ja r no for s se l l Photo JAKKE NIKKARINEN/STUDIO SKAALA

P

ekka Haavisto has six grueling months of election campaigning, travelling around Finland, thousands of meetings and hundreds of interviews behind him. Early predictions had Finland’s presidential elections down as a done deal, but the candidate from a small enviro contender, The Greens of Finland, brought some excitement into February’s poll.

Garnering more than one million votes and the backing of 38 percent of voters in the second round, Haavisto came second to the newly elected moderate conservative candidate, Sauli Niinistö.

Two weeks after the elections, Haavisto is returning to his ordinary life as a Member of Parliament and mediator of international crises. He is on his way to a summit on Somalia in London, which will involve representatives from all the parties to the conflict, regional cooperation partners, forty governments and several international organizations.

“For a year I have been focusing on domestic issues and have not been very involved in the conflicts I previously followed very closely. I now have a lot of catching up to do. I try my best to keep my competence up to date and hope that someday I will be able to utilize it in crisis management,” Haavisto says.

40 | s o lv e d

Pekka Haavisto has investigated war damage in the Balkans and the Middle East, and mediated conflicts in Africa. Having come second in Finland’s presidential elections, he will now continue his work as a peacemaker.

Conflict resolution in post-war Balkans

Outside of his homeland, Pekka Haavisto is known as a conflict mediator – an investigator of the environmental damages caused by war and an arbiter of armed conflicts.

He has worked in troubled areas in the Balkans, the Middle East and Africa.

Most peace negotiators arrive at the post through a career in diplomacy. Haavisto has a different background.

We had to work together to determine how clean is ‘clean’.

Finland has produced many peace negotiators besides Pekka Haavisto.

The Nobel-prize-winning ex-President Martti Ahtisaari worked on the peace processes in Namibia, Kosovo and Aceh in Indonesia; Harri Holkeri mediated talks in Northern Ireland; and Elisabeth Rehn was the UN Under-Secretary General and a Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in the Balkans.

According to Haavisto, one of the advantages of Finns in mediation is their inborn sense of equality. Finns generally approach all people equally, whatever their social background.

“People have sometimes asked me how I can speak to people from different social classes in the same way. I tell them we address everyone equally.

It is a real asset in peace talks.”

s o lv e d | 41

Excuse me, we’ve just had a war here. Come back later to count your butterflies.

The former alternative magazine editor was elected to the Finnish Parliament in 1987, and became Finland’s Minister for Environment and Development Cooperation in 1995.

“After my period as MP and minister I had planned to return to editing, but the former German Environment Minister, Klaus Töpfer, called me up in 1999 to say he needed a person with a background in politics and environmental issues,” Haavisto recalls.

The proposal was for investigating the environmental impact of the war in Kosovo. The United Nations Environment Programme, led by Töpfer, wanted to find out whether certain claims concerning environmental destruction were true. The team found damages caused both by the war and by earlier industrial pollution. The reporting had to be clear, distinguishing between the different causes of the environmental problems.

“I learned that anything that the UN calls war damages is really serious. You have to be very careful to ensure all your statements are correct and based on scientific evidence.”

Another thing he learnt was that there are many different concepts of “cleanness”. The group’s Danish and American investigators would have evacuated whole villages due to pollutant concentrations that the Germans considered completely normal for the eastern parts of their own country.

“We were used to different levels in our own countries, so we had to work together to determine how clean is ‘clean’. We ended up using the definitions of the WHO and the limits provided by the IAEA for radiation levels.”

First reactions were often unwelcoming

The UNEP method for evaluating environmental impact developed in the Balkans was used in the early 2000s in other conflict areas, and Haavisto took on similar roles

42 | s o lv e d

in the Palestinian territory, in Afghanistan and in Iraq.

Haavisto recalls the negotiations between Palestine and Israel during the second uprising as being the most difficult negotiation environment of his career.

“In principle, the Palestinians were not supposed to collaborate in any way with the Israelis. An exception was made for environmental issues, because it benefited both parties. The negotiations were always overshadowed by political mistrust and hidden opposition, however.”

In security terms, the most difficult conditions were in Iraq, where Haavisto went right after the ousting of Saddam Hussein. In addition to the damages of war, the country suffered from looting and destruction of oil plants and industrial facilities.

“It was shocking to see factories containing chemicals being set alight or barrels containing radioactive waste being stolen from nuclear waste bunkers. On top of this there was the very delicate security situation, which in some situations prevented us from doing our work,” Haavisto says.

The first reaction towards the UNEP researchers was often confused and unwelcoming. Haavisto remembers often hearing comments to the effect of “Excuse me, we’ve just had a war here. Come back later to count your butterflies.”

“It often took some time to explain to people that our work was about extensive environmental and health hazards, not just about nature conservation and biodiversity.”

Links between environment and conflicts

The environment plays many roles in global conflicts.

Drought caused by climate change has set nomadic tribes in motion, for example, in South Sudan and Somalia.

Water scarcity is also one of the factors behind conflicts in the Middle East.

“Looking at conflict maps and environmental problem maps of the world, you can see they overlap in many places. In other words, many of the places that are in the news for political problems also have acute environmental problems,” Haavisto says.

The environment can also be used as a weapon in warfare. During the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, centuries-old irrigation systems were destroyed in order to force people into cities, where they could be better controlled. In some conflicts, combatants seek to destroy

drinking water supplies and arable land, or to prevent others from accessing them.

“But the environment may also be the lowest common denominator between the different sides, or the first thing they start to discuss after the crisis.

It can be used as a genuine peacemaking element,” Haavisto says.

Breaking the cycle of violence

Haavisto moved on from investigating the environment to being a peace negotiator in 2005. Before that he had worked in Liberia and examined the status of oil wells and leaking plants in South Sudan. Thanks to his local experience, Haavisto was appointed as an EU Special Representative for Sudan and Darfur.

“As a negotiator, I work the same way I did in my environmental tasks. I am out in the field a lot and I familiarize myself with the situation on the ground.

This time my visits weren’t to villages suffering from environmental problems but to combatants who were not yet included in the peace process. I knew many such groups, so the African Union, which was in charge of the negotiations, began to use the EU and me as active intermediaries.”

Peace talks are lengthy processes with a low success rate. New mediators are brought in to try to find a solution, but often this yields no results. Someone worked out that there have been around twenty different peace initiatives and processes in Somalia in the last twenty years.

“Peace negotiators have to be persistent and have nerves of steel. They have to put up with failures and tangled processes that are unlikely to reach their goals.

However, the peace process itself may have a restraining effect upon the conflict, creating a lull during which the worst human rights abuses can be addressed.”

Another requirement for negotiators is that they must listen to all the parties of the conflict, even those who have been demonized during the process.

“In all peace processes there are groups whose actions seem to represent pure evil. I have found that even within these groups there can be individuals or factions with whom negotiations can be started. A peace negotiator must always believe that the cycle of violence can be broken.”

Plenty of competence, little agility When touring the country for his presidential campaign, Pekka Haavisto visited many businesses to learn about the opportunities of clean technology for solving environmental problems. His visits included companies that manufacture solar panels and wind turbines.

“Finland has a small domestic market and gets relatively little sun. Globally, however, there is plenty of demand and lots of sun, wind and waves. Only one innovation is needed to make use of them; when it is replicated a million times, you can have the next Nokia on your hands.”

Haavisto says he wants to support this kind of competence and hopes that the solutions of the competence cluster can also be presented to some of the world’s conflict areas. However, he has noticed that although Finland has top competence and enthusiastic people, there are rigid operating models that hamper the realization of their full potential.

“In this sense, Finland has been a bit slow.

When we were looking for assistance for the UNEP, for example, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Switzerland reacted quicker than Finland. That meant that our country’s technical competence was not utilized in that project.”

As a negotiator, I work the same way I did in my environmental tasks.

I familiarize myself with the situation on the ground.

s o lv e d | 43

Just

make it

cool! t e x t h a n na joh de

There is no way of doing business today without considering its impact on the environment. All companies must work on their environmental solutions, energy and material efficiency and ecological footprint. Perhaps we are starting to take clean technology for granted, but to make a real impact on the world; cleantech should do a lot more. Rethink and revise business models: how can we keep cleantech cool? Here are our views on future signals, based on an analysis by the Finpro Foresight team.

44 | s o lv e d

Gami

it!

Just make it cool!

Many buyers fall for environmental selling points, but do they have to settle for the second best when it comes to design? Apple’s products are a perfect example of technological solutions that have become amazingly popular because of their engaging overall user experience. Products with great design and a sustainable footprint would appeal to both the gadget freaks and the tree-huggers, as well as everyone in between.

Designers of cleantech solutions may turn to nature as an endless source of inspiration, as it provides organic shapes and textures, something for all the senses. Just look at the Light Blossom solar street lights by Philips, which imitate a flower’s way of opening up, blooming and collecting solar energy in the daytime, and provide illumination by night.

Preferably more

fy

useful than less

harmful!

Gamify it!

Preferably more useful

Features from games and play, like achievement, point scoring, status and competition can today be found in learning, media and charity applications, looking to engage and educate users in new and innovative ways. Volkswagen’s Fun Theory initiative proves that making something fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better. Recycling glass is not motivating as such, but turning a recycling station into an arcade game proved a great success. See the whole story at http://thefuntheory.com and be inspired to think about fun, playful and exciting ways to develop your cleantech solutions.

than less harmful!

Cleantech is an answer to many problems, such as pollution, water scarcity and energy wastage.

That often gives a negative edge to talking about it, as people have a tendency to focus on defects and downsides. When communicating about cleantech, we should be very aware of this and find ways to really highlight the benefits and positive sides. How about maximizing clean air instead of minimizing pollution?

Emphasizing the tidy environment instead of problems in waste management? You get the idea.

It is not easy to change mindsets and public opinion, but it can work miracles.

TrendPulse is Finpro’s foresight service for companies who want to be a step ahead in developing their business activities.

With the help of TrendPulse, observations and significant signals from all over the world are collected and combined, converted into phenomena and analyzed to identify companies’ future opportunities.

“Foresight is not about predicting the future correctly, but about designing alternative futures with the help of imagination and dreams about a better tomorrow.

Whatever happens in the future, there seem to be great opportunities ahead for the cleantech business,” says Niko Herlin, the leader of the Finpro Foresight team.

s o lv e d | 45

companies have solutions for energy problems in

46 | s o lv e d

text tuula lehto Pho t o s SHUTTERSTOCK , AW-E n e rgy

Economic growth in India is expected to continue at an annual rate of 7%. Private consumption and investments are driving the economy, but reliable availability of the energy required for this economic growth is one of the uncertainty factors associated with development in India. One solution could be renewable energy, particularly in light of its economic feasibility.

s o lv e d | 47

We believe that the continuous growth in India’s energy need will alter the situation in favor of renewable energy very soon.

48 | s o lv e d

Bagasse is turned into biofuel

I

We have to teach customers about the importance of product reliability in India.

ndia has already passed legislation to encourage the use of bioenergy and, for example, set a target of 20% ethanol content in fuel. The raw material is by-products of agriculture, such as rice straw and bagasse, a waste product of the sugar refining industry. As a result, biofuel production does not compete with food production but is sustainable in terms of the environment and from social and economic perspectives. The Finnish company Chempolis is interested in supplying the Indian biofuel market with its leading biofuel technology.

“Our technology is very well suited to India. Now it’s only a matter of who will be our partner in the breakthrough and when building the first biorefinery.

We intend to establish a company in India as soon as possible,” says Pasi Rousu, President of Asia & Pacific, Chempolis.

The challenges facing companies operating in or entering India include difficult administrative structures and inflexible bureaucracy.

“Although the country has legislation to encourage biofuel, implementation has been very slow. This is why the price of fuel ethanol doesn’t correspond to the international market price yet. The lack of infrastructure for biomass collection is also challenging, especially when there are biomass users in many sectors.”

“However, the strength of Chempolis is its efficient technology solution for the production process, which combines fuel production with biochemical, electricity and process steam production. This means that we could, for example, work together with the sugar, alcohol, biomass, paper and chemical industries. We believe that the continuous growth in India’s energy need will alter the situation in favor of renewable energy very soon. We have to be involved in this development and on the spot ready to take action.

s o lv e d | 49

Getting rid of the disappearing electricity problem

I

n addition to electricity production, India is struggling with the issue of reliable electricity distribution. The country has two major electricity distribution problems: electricity doesn’t reach everyone in the country and there is a lot of loss during distribution – up to 45% in some places. For the sake of comparison, the corresponding figure in Finland is less than 4%. India has 6 million kilometers of low and medium voltage networks, the majority of which require upgrading. At this time, India is investing in 200.000 kilometers of electricity network each year, and thus improving the availability of electric energy.

The Finnish company Ensto has been supplying the Indian market with electricity distribution solutions since 2006.

“We mainly focus on the low voltage overhead line network, where we have become the market leader in certain places. Our activities in India are strengthened by our own local plant, where we design, manufacture, and test the majority of the products we sell in India.

We also have the capacity to adapt our products for local conditions,” says Markku Wederhorn, President of Ensto Utility Networks.

Finnish competence is based on high quality products and tailored solutions. However, this does not guarantee success in a country where plenty of cheap technology is available.

“The Indian business environment is very challenging because patience is needed to teach buyers what quality means in the long run. Our sales organization does an incredible amount of work in this area.”

Ensto’s sales have been growing well in India. The future looks good, as the product offering is increasing along with recognition.

“Although India is a challenging market, it is a place that is worth focusing on actively. Carefully prepared preliminary reports and market studies performed at the very beginning contribute to success in the market. Creating a fixed support network around the company’s own operations is also important.

50 | s o lv e d

Energy for India from waves?

The Finnish company AW-Energy makes energy from waves. The company’s solution involves large plates anchored to the sea bottom, which create energy from the back and forth movement of the sea. Wave energy is produced about 500 meters offshore, which allows for a short energy transfer to inhabitation and industry located on the shoreline.

The sea has to have just the right type of movement and power in order to be suitable for producing wave energy.

The Indian Ocean has potential locations for this activity.

“The areas at the very tip of India and off the coast of Sri Lanka are interesting spots in terms of our technology.

However, India is not the easiest market area for renewable energy because it has no incentives. In any case, we’re very interested in the Indian market and are looking for suitable partners in the area. We believe that attitudes towards renewable energy are becoming more positive in India, as they already have in part with wind and solar energy,” explains John Liljelund, CEO of AW-Energy.

www.ensto.com www.chempolis.com www.aw-energy.fi

Three state LED indicator shows the charging status.

Elegant poles have durable, easy to clean structure made of stainless steel.

Ensto is a global pioneer in developing and manufacturing of EV charging solutions.

Data link to external information systems over a GPRS connection.

User identification via either an RFID card or a mobile phone.

Easy to upgrade and maintain due to modular structure.

Don’t be late from the pole position.

EV charging stations from Ensto.

Hybrid and electric vehicles are the future. But that future must be staked out now – with charging stations that work. Ensto offers a wide selection of quality EV charging solutions. Ground and wall mounted, 1-2 socket, lockable, waterproof EV charging stations with tri-colour LED and remote control.

A new leadership competition has started. Which cities, properties, parking halls, companies, services and brands actually serve and attract forward-thinking premium customers. Ensto EV charging solutions connect you not only to vehicles, but to opinion leaders and their choices.

www.ensto.com/evcharging

illustration: helmi sirola

Clean Tech: Defining a Revolution

W

hen I came to the Netherlands (Rotterdam) back in 2007 to give a talk after the publication of our book The Clean Tech Revolution, the mostly European audience openly challenged me. They exclaimed that for a true revolution you needed to have “blood” in the streets.

I explained that while I thought that was already actually happening – the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan were in many ways a direct result of America’s reliance on foreign oil – what we were really talking about was a technology revolution. For us, revolution meant a wholesale change from one way of doing things to another, like the shift from mainframe computing to personal computers and from land-based telephony to wireless.

The questioning was eye-opening for me. It had never been raised by American audiences. Was our view of “technology innovation + disruption = revolution” a peculiarly American meme? Was it born and bred of the cloth of Thomas Edison, Steve Jobs, and other famed U.S. inventors and innovators?

To me the shift was far more than U.S.-centric; it was clearly global and incontrovertible. Last year we issued our 10th annual Clean Energy Trends report (our new 2012 Clean Energy Trends report was not available before press time for this article). If you need any proof that change is afoot, just look at the numbers we issued comparing 2000 and 2010. During that period global markets for solar PV and wind expanded from just $6.5 billion to more than $130 billion. The cost to install an average solar PV system dropped from $9 to $4.82 (it’s now closer to $3.50). Venture capital in the U.S. expanded from just one percent of total venture activity to nearly a quarter.

Solar cells, which are mostly made from silicon (the same basic material used in manufacturing computer chips) or other high-tech materials, are now exhibiting economies of scale seen in earlier tech revolutions.

Between 2007 and 2011, solar PV total system costs (including PV modules, balance of system components, and installation) dropped by more than half, with complete systems being installed globally in 2011 at an average $3.47 a peak watt or 14 to 23 cents per kWh. Contrary to critics who say the industry isn’t ready for prime time, solar is, in fact, becoming increasingly cost-competitive.

There’s little doubt that the future of energy will be cleaner. In 2011, nearly 70 percent of new electricity capacity in the European Union came from renewables.

Solar PV and wind power accounted for 47 percent and 21 percent of new additions respectively. Add in natural gas, which made up 22 percent of new capacity installations in Europe, and these three sources are proving the energy sources of choice, representing 90 percent of new capacity additions in 2011. By contrast, coal’s contribution to new generation in Europe was just five percent. Globally in 2011, investments in clean-energy projects reached an all-time record of $260 billion, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

We still have a long road ahead, and change won’t be easy. But it’s clear to me that we are moving from a reliance primarily on extractive, fossil-fuel industries to a new world based on cleaner electrons, a digital smart grid, zero-emission vehicles, green buildings, and more. And it will be a highly dispersed shift, from Asia and Europe to the Americas, the Middle East, and beyond. If that isn’t revolutionary, I don’t know what is.

Ron Pernick is co-founder and managing director of cleantech research and advisory firm Clean Edge and co-author of the business books The Clean Tech Revolution and Clean Tech Nation.

s o lv e d | 53

Sign up!

ready to meet the public?

Companies now have a unique new opportunity to become the media and to directly influence the topics of public discussion.

Pictures create brands t e x t ja n i t i mon e n

T

raditional marketing methods are no longer enough to convince the increasingly critical public of the brilliance of a product. Companies have to be more open about themselves. Social media can help them turn from passive followers into active opinion leaders.

In the social media, all companies start from the same level in marketing and communications, regardless of their size.

An active company can create a close dialogue with people through social media, and thus generate loyalty towards its brand.

However, its discourse on technology, for example, has to be different in the social media than it is within the company. Not everything has to be disclosed at once; even complex issues can be shown a bit at a time.

“Companies have to be brave enough to make their communications look like themselves. In our case, that means talking about technology in an inspiring way. Our

54 | s o lv e d

Cleantech Finland member company Novosan has an original approach to using social media, especially Facebook and Twitter.

“We want our company image to stand out among others in the field. Communicating with pictures supports our message and will hopefully help us in our brandbuilding,” says Novosan CEO Tommi Virkki.

Novosan has been rewarded by the fans for its originality in communicating in the social media.

nerdy excitement shines through – after all, we can’t really hide it,” says Timo Haanpää, Communications Manager at ZenRobotics, which designs intelligent waste robots.

With the help of social media, companies can avoid some of the classic mistakes in communications.

“One major problem is trying to satisfy everyone.

The really interesting message is often left out just in case.

But what people remember is the surprising and polemical message, one that strives for genuine interaction,” Haanpää says. www.zenrobotics.com www.novosan.fi

We create the future out of the past Outokumpu stainless steel is our contribution to the fight against waste and short-term solutions. Our stainless steel contains 90% recycled material, is created to last centuries and once the project has reached the end of its life, to be recycled and reborn. As the world’s leading producer of sustainable stainless steel we continue to invest in developing new grades and services that change the way we fabricate to deliver greater long-term benefits both financial and environmental.

outokumpu.com

t e x t ja r no for s s e l l i l lu st r at ion ELINA MINN

Thinking Out of the Box in Finland A Canadian lawyer and businessman came to investigate the little country that has given the world Nokia mobiles, Angry Birds and a Nobel Peace Prize winner.

T

he patience of Helsinki citizens is being tried by the third winter in a row with heavy snowfall. By February there is more than half a meter of the white stuff and the papers warn of “snow chaos”. Pedestrians have to watch out for ice falling from rooftops, and half of all street-side parking spaces are filled by heaps of snow.

And it just keeps snowing.

Sitting at a café in Helsinki, André Noël Chaker is not bothered by the snow. As a native Canadian he is used to winter. Having been acquainted with Finns and Finnishness for 20 years, he also knows that Finland can cope with this snow chaos, as it has done before.

“Finland is a tricky place to live, but the difficulties are also rewarding. You have to come up with solutions and be innovative. In challenging circumstances, Finns have had to solve the problems at hand, because there was no other option. You work or you perish!”

Trained as a lawyer, Chaker worked at law firms in Montreal and New York when he was younger. Later he has led a scientific institute in Jyväskylä, Finland, worked in a global mobile technology company and been the legal counsel for a sports organization in Helsinki. He is now the International Affairs Advisor to the executive management of Finland’s national gambling monopoly, Veikkaus.

Last autumn, André Chaker published the book The Finnish Miracle. It is about Finland’s success story over the last 150 years.

s o lv e d | 57

In a rating where the perfect country has 100 points, Finland scores 25.

Sweden, Switzerland and Canada attain a similar level.

Most other countries score less than 10 points.

“My book is the story of a people of whom one in six were dying of starvation in the late nineteenth century, but who now are in the top three countries of the world, according to all of the major indicators: competitiveness, lack of corruption and learning outcomes,” Chaker says.

Great stories

According to the final report of the Country Brand Delegation, published in late 2010, Finland aims to be the world’s top problem-solver in 2030. This is based on three main areas: development of social innovations, know-how in clean water and organic food, and exports of educational competence.

Aside from his ordinary job, Chaker is involved in spreading Finland’s country brand to the world. He is pleased that the brand delegation could agree on Finland’s story.

“It is very important for every country, community or company to find its position – that which makes it unique, different and desirable,” Chaker says.

He believes that Finland has a great story to tell. It should be told to the world in a manner that is neither too arrogant nor too modest.

“It’s no good to try to instruct others or claim ‘We’re better than you’. But Finns can say ‘We’re good at this, and we can help you if you like’.”

The best way to spread the message about Finnishness is through Finnish companies. The story of Finns as problem-solvers can be a framework into which the companies sink their own stories, showing how they have been unprejudiced and how they demonstrate innovativeness and courage.

58 | s o lv e d

Silence both separates and joins together

André Chaker describes himself as a typical North American who talks a lot, sells himself and exudes selfconfidence. The Finnish style is the complete opposite of this, which initially created an “interesting tension” in his encounters with Finns.

“I wondered how these people coped in life without talking! The Finnish communication style and the use of silence are really rare. In North America or France it is uncomfortable, impolite or unnatural to be quiet with another person.”

Silence has its pros and cons. If you take it too far, you won’t get your message across. However, it allows everyone to get their word in with others listening quietly.

“I myself have tried to learn that I don’t have to talk all the time,” Chaker laughs.

Having to adapt to a completely different style of communication is one example of the difficulty of international cooperation. Chaker admits that it was a painful process for him, too. When people from different backgrounds get together, it can cause conflicts and misunderstandings. It may force one to change one’s views and beliefs.

“But we can’t solve our shared problems if we don’t mine the best resources. Wisdom doesn’t live in just one country. When you travel abroad or are in international company, your potential is released and you can find new solutions.”

Authenticity sells

As a small nation, Finland has had to open up to the world. Despite their minimalist communication style, Finns are open-minded and prepared to try new things, Chaker says. In his view, Finnish people approach problems very practically but at the same time thinking out of the box.

“You have to be a little nuts to start developing a tool that shines a light into your ear to reduce the winter blues, or a mobile game where flightless birds crash into green pigs. But these kinds of people are needed to solve problems.”

Chaker lists some other strengths that Finnish people have: a functional way of working, perseverance, fairness and solid confidence in their fellow citizens.

In Finland, 98 percent of people believe that they will get their lost wallet back if it is found by a neighbor or a police officer.

Chaker also believes that Finns benefit from their directness and businesslike manner. These are also characteristics which can make Finnish companies stand out in the world.

“Their style may be a bit boring, but it is reliable compared for example to American oversell or French arrogance. If a Finnish guy with three degrees presents a product with superior qualities and just says ‘This works’, it’ll sell. Finns don’t just talk, they act.”

Chaker admits that the average Finnish engineer could learn a little more small talk, but he shouldn’t try to become a stand-up comedian. It wouldn’t be believable.

André Noël Chaker

How are Finns viewed around the world?

British or French people may benefit from their countries’ long histories or the dominant status of their language. When a Finnish person succeeds you can be sure it’s down to inventiveness. Everything Finland and Finns have achieved has been earned.

Finland is among the top countries according to nearly all the welfare indicators. How do Finns themselves view this?

People are suspicious about these comparisons and don’t want to believe in them. Finns are seldom satisfied, because they aim for perfection. It annoys them that someone is better. On the personal level this can be irritating, but on the national level it’s a great driver of development.

The country’s success was for a long time spearheaded by Nokia, which has now lost its unshakeable number-one position in the mobile phone world. How will that affect Finland?

Nokia’s troubles will keep Finns humble and ensure that innovativeness is kept alive.

Something else will have to come after it.

Can Finland become a victim of its own success?

I don’t think I’ll ever see the day when Finns become arrogant or too self-satisfied.

s o lv e d | 59

thisisFINLAND.fi forms an attractive window on Finland for everyone interested in our country, its culture and its people.

this is

FINLAND

things you should and shouldn’t know