Lowering carbon dioxide emissions
Most domestic energy production in Finland does not involve any carbon dioxide emissions. In 2010, nuclear power accounted for 28,4 per cent of power production, hydropower for 16,6 per cent and wood-based biomass for 13,5 per cent. Finland is the leading industrialised Western country in the use of wood-based fuels, thanks to the Finnish forest industry.
The forest industry produces a significant amount of energy when black liquor generated in the pulping process is combusted. In addition, the waste wood, bark and sawdust that cannot be used as raw material are used in energy production. Wood-based fuels do not produce any net carbon dioxide emissions because wood only releases the same amount of carbon dioxide that was bound into the tree from the atmosphere during its growth process.
In terms of carbon dioxide emissions, coal condensing power is the worst alternative as it is very inefficient, with an efficiency rate of only 35-42 %. Some of the coal-fired power plants in Finland are old and it is evident that many of them will reach the end of their service life before 2020. Furthermore, the regulations regarding emissions from large boilers will be tightened in the mid-2010s and the old power plants commissioned in the late 1960s and 1970s will not be able to meet the new requirements.
Some fossil fuels are used in combined heat and power generation. The efficiency of combined generation is as high as 85-90 per cent. District heating has been an increasingly popular heating method in towns and cities in Finland, during the last decades. The greater the demand for district heating, the more economically attractive a combined heat and power plant will be compared to a district heating boiler. Industry also generates a lot of power in connection with the process of steam production.
Combined heat and power generation accounted for 32,7 % of electricity supply in 2010, making Finland a leading country in the world in this area. Because of its high efficiency, the use of coal in cogeneration is also justified.
Electricity Supply by Energy Sources in 2010 (PDF, 1 page)
Net Supplies of Electricity in 2010 (PDF, 1 page)
