REPORT 1/20211

SOLAR
CLUSTER
STUDY

Gaia Consulting Oy
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ISSN 1797-7347
ISBN 978-952-457-659-8

BUSINESS FINLAND

We believe in the power of ideas. That’s why we

fund and help Finnish companies grow quicker and
develop their innovations to become global success
stories.

Authors:
Jenny Lehtomäki, Håkan Jonsson, Solveig Roschier,
Tuukka Rautiainen

Copyright Business Finland 2020. All rights reserved.

This publication contains copyrighted material of Business Finland or
third parties. Material may not be used for commercial purposes.

This publication represents the views of the authors and not the official
view of Business Finland.

Business Finland is not liable for any damages caused by the use of
this material.

Source must be mentioned when quoting this publication.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 Introduction.......................................................... 4 4.1 Winter package EU.................................................. 26 5.2 Positioning of solar industry in Finland
as part of the EU developments................................... 34
1.1 Background and objectives..................................... 4 4.2 Renewable energy in Finland................................. 28
5.3 Strengths and weaknesses of the
1.2 Methodology.............................................................. 4 4.2.1 Finnish Government’s National Energy Finnish solar energy value network.............................. 35
and Climate Strategy for 2030............................... 28
1.3 Brief overview of the global solar energy market.... 6 5.4 Business, collaboration and joint-venture
4.2.2 Comment on Finland as assessed opportunities in solar energy in Finland..................... 36
2 Current status of Solar Energy in Finland.............. 8 by the consortium Smart Energy Transition.......... 29
5.5 Key rationale for FDI.............................................. 37
2.1 Overview of the solar energy market in Finland...... 8 4.3 EU Taxonomy.......................................................... 30
5.6 Summary of conclusions and recommendations.. 39
2.2 Solar energy value network......................................12 4.3.1 Production of Electricity from Solar PV........ 32
6 Appendix.............................................................. 41
2.3 Companies and other actors within the 4.3.2 Production of Electricity from
solar energy value network in Finland......................... 18 Concentrated Solar Power....................................... 32 6.1 Appendix 1: List of interviewees.............................41

3 Competences, technologies, R&D and pilots in 4.4 Reuse and recycling................................................ 32 7 Source references................................................ 42
solar energy in Finland........................................ 23
5 Conclusions.......................................................... 33
3.1 Pilots and demonstrations carried out in Finland...23
5.1 Summary of the existing and foreseeable
3.2 Technologies and R&D............................................ 25 future business and innovation environment
of solar energy in Finland............................................. 33
4 Key policy, legislative and regulatory framework
for solar energy and future legislations.............. 26
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1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The focus of this study is mainly on solar electricity and
solar thermal applications are only briefly considered.
Solar energy is more and more becoming an integral
Also, it is important to consider in the study that solar
part of the energy palette globally and in Finland – the
technologies are part of wider domains such as smart
solar market in Finland is growing and subsequently the
energy systems and businesses as well as renewable
business potential associated to it. At the same time
energy production systems and businesses.
Finland has technologies and capabilities that enable
business in the European and global solar energy value
networks. There is a need to look at the solar energy 1.2 METHODOLOGY
market and value network in Finland to determine its Figure 1 presents solar energy as part of the
strengths and weaknesses. This enables to market the wider renewable energy production context. As a
business and partnership opportunities in Finland for methodology, this study considers solar energy
potential foreign companies and the Business Finland business as part of smart energy systems/business
Smart Energy program to focus its activities. as well as part of larger sustainable renewable energy
production systems/business. In particular, the study
The aim of the cluster study is to provide a clear considers solar energy/technologies/business as an
mapping of the solar energy value network and to entity in the context of the shown dimensions and
determine the potential of the various business and at the same time covering the important interfaces,
technology segments within the solar energy sector for mainly that some of the system level components are
acquiring inward foreign direct investments (FDI) in integral to the solar/renewable energy applications,
Finland (but also strengthen the Finnish market and our such as inverters. Thus, these will be considered as part
ecosystems and increase exports). of the main solar business. For other technologies and
businesses that have important business specificities
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by themselves, such as batteries, no deep dive is done

• Change of modality from central to distributed energy to avoid overlap with other Business Finland Smart
production, e.g. local microgrids and energy communities Energy program work.
Sustainable renewable
• New players/companies reshaping the traditional energy
energy production production value networks Gaia Consulting conducted this study for Business
systems and business
• Role and dynamics of large companies vs. SMEs from the Finland in fall 2020. The results are based on a desktop
FDI point of view study in which information was gathered from public
sources complemented by ten interviews of Finnish
solar energy experts. The experts were chosen to
• Interface between solar technologies and smart energy represent companies from various parts of the solar
Smart energy solutions solutions with different system components energy value chain. Also, expertise from the research
and business • Interface for example towards mobility, grid, storage, and regulation environments was included. The main
heating, demand response etc. solutions study questions were:
• The current status and operational environment and
• Solar Photovoltaic technologies – electricity production
challenges of solar energy market in Finland.
Solar energy business
• Solar Thermal technologies – heat production • Future trends and developments in solar energy in
Finland.

Figure 1. Solar energy as part of the renewable energy production context. Source: Gaia Consulting
• Value network description with key companies.
• Conclusions on solar energy/power related business
opportunities and related investments to Finland.
• Regulation is considered as part of the operational
environment in Finland.
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1.3 BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE GLOBAL SOLAR Most of the recent installations are taking place in Asia,
ENERGY MARKET especially in China. It should be noted that China is also
the market leader in solar panel manufacturing, although
The total installed solar capacity globally was in 2019 there is movement in Europe towards mass production of
548 GW1. The development of global installed solar European solar panels2. Also increasing amounts of solar
power capacity is presented in Figure 2. As exhibited in panels have been installed in the recent years in Europe
the figure, solar electricity installations have increased and North America. It is interesting that IEA has estimated
by an average yearly growth of 25 % between 2010 and that solar PV will overtake wind power this year 2020 in
2019. global electricity production capacity.

584 842
+20%

Africa Eurasia N America 486 721

+25%
Asia Europe Oceania

C America + Carib Middle East S America 388 569

+31%

295 948
+33%
222 091
176 088
139 596
104 085
73 738
41 545

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Figure 2. Solar power capacity development in 2010-2019 in different continents.

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Solar PV is estimated to continue on its exponential industry and to commercial and retail buildings. From
growth path in the coming years. These IEA’s the point of view of power supply, solar power can
estimations are presented in Figure 3. mainly be regarded as distributed production that takes
place nearby the point of consumption.4
The new installed capacity is distributed rather equally
between installations made to individual housing, to

3500 GW

Projections
3000 Coal

Gas
2500
Oil

2000 Nuclear

Wind
1500
Solar PV

1000 Other renewables

Hydro
500 Battery storage

0
2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040

Figure 3. IEA stated policies scenario estimation of electricity capacities development.3

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2 CURRENT STATUS OF
SOLAR ENERGY IN FINLAND

2.1 OVERVIEW OF THE SOLAR ENERGY electricity spot price in Finland 2019 was 44,04 €/
MARKET IN FINLAND MWh9. If solar electricity is utilized on-site, distribution
costs and electricity taxes are avoided, which increases
At the end of the year 2019 the installed solar power the benefits of PV consumption. Installed solar
capacity connected to grid in Finland was 198 MW5 thermal capacity was 40 MW10 at the end of year 2018.
which produced 178,1 GWh6 of electricity (likely to grow Altogether, solar technology industry is estimated
towards 300 MW by the end of 20207 ). In addition to to employ over 500 persons5 in Finland in 2020. In
this there is vast amount of smaller off-grid PV sites. 2019 share of solar electricity was 0,22 % of the total
The exact number of off-grid PV sites8 is not known, but electricity produced in Finland. Shares of electricity
it is estimated that they may account for 90 % of all produced in Finland 2019 is presented in figure below
PV sites. 178 GWh equals the value of over 7,8 million (Figure 4).
euros for sold solar electricity, considering the average
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As is illustrated in Figure 5, Frost and Sullivan 200 MW, and it seems unlikely that Finland would
estimated in 2018 that annual installed solar energy account for about half of total Nordic solar production
production capacity in the whole Nordics would amount capacity. Hence, also in line with statistics from the
to some 400 MW in year 2019. As is referred above, the Finnish Energy Authority, the Finnish solar market has
actual figures amount only for Finland approximately grown more than expected12.

Nuclear power Other fossil fuels Wind power Utility scale Commercial & Industrial Residential

Peat Hydro power Natural gas

Other renewables Oil Wood fuels

800
Coal Other energy source Solar power
700

600

500

400

300

200

100

0
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025

Figure 5. Annual Installed Capacity Forecast by Project Type, Nordic Countries 2016-2025. 13
Figure 4. Produced electricity in Finland (GWh) in 2019. 11
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In Figure 6 is presented the solar full load hours

potential in Europe. Full load hours in Finland are
similar to Northern Germany. Helsinki-Uusimaa
Regional Council published a study14 in 2017 about the
prerequisites for large scale solar PV production in the
Uusimaa region. In it was concluded that even if the
solar radiation levels in Finland are far less compared
to Southern Europe levels when measured on horizontal
plane, the tilt of the modules when installed decreases
this difference. In general, the profitability of a solar
power plant depends on several factors, one being the
solar irradiation level. Other factors are efficiency of the
panel and system or how well the incoming irradiation
is being utilized to its full extent, price of the electricity
and investment costs. In the past years, decreasing
solar panel and subsequent investment costs have
had a positive affect on the profitability of solar power
systems in Finland whereas decreasing electricity price
has had negative effect on profitability.

The Finnish solar energy market consists of two main

customer segments: industry and consumers. For the
industries, the trend has been to install large solar
power plants at own premises to produce sustainable
energy for own use. For example, some food industry, Figure 6. Solar power full load hours in Europe. 15
retail and manufacturing industry companies have
installed solar panels with total capacities of 3 - 80 MW.
Energy-as-a-service -solutions are growing as a common
product solution in the solar industry. Companies
take care of the installation and investment costs and
customer will utitize the solar energy produced.
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In the consumer segment, several energy companies 2. The business models are developing, and there is
install solar panels and systems as a service to increasing demand for maintenance services.
households. Some energy companies also provide as The business models develop from simple sales of
product the possibility to buy solar production from systems that an end customer owns and maintains to a
installed capacity elsewhere with i.e. PPA agreements. more complex set of business opportunities where the
investment is done by a company that provides the end
There are four trends that have been visible already customer with the electricity that the system produces
for a couple of years on the solar market, both in and is in charge of the maintenance of the system.
Finlandas well as globally. These are: 16 IoT and smart monitoring systems become part of the
maintenance process.
1. The size of average solar power stations
is growing 3. Energy storage solutions enable production to be
In Finland already several MW size solar power plants shifted from quiet hours to peak hours.
have been installed in the recent years compared to The solar system gradually evolves towards a smart
much smaller entities before. Globally, for example and in some cases microgrid based system entity that
in China, the plants have grown already to GW scale. provides also new market opportunities in developing
In Finland, the driver for the growing size of the countries and coarsely populated areas.
installations has been the cooling needs in commercial,
office and industry buildings for which a solar PV power 4. Software becomes an integral part of
plant on the roof of a building brings a well-suited the solar system.
solution. In particular, for such public buildings, the
consumption of electricity go well hand in hand with the The solar power sector provides new business
solar power generation curve - consumption occurs at opportunities for the software sector that is at high-level
the same time with the expected generation peaks. in Finland. When the electricity systems become smart,
information needs to be smoothly exchanged between
various system components and devices. Software
solutions along with hardware become an integral part
of the end product.
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2.2 SOLAR ENERGY VALUE NETWORK value networks consist of such services as site & system
design, development, installation, project management,
A simple description of solar electricity value network is
inspections, finance and insurance. In this study, the
in Figure 7 below. The main value network is composed
main focus is on the “balance of system technology”
of six different parts: 1) raw materials, 2) manufacturing
and complementary value networks of the network
of solar panel components, 3) manufacturing of
even if also other parts of the network are looked at.
solar panels, 4) balancing system technology and
“Balance of system technology” contains such products
5) reuse and recycling. In addition to main value
and services as inverters, switches and other system
networks, complementary value networks reinforce the
balancing services. These parts of the value network
main value network. Complementary value networks
were chosen as the focus of this study on the basis that
include component wise for example such product and
a lot of companies and knowledge exist within these
service areas as mounting systems, wiring, switches,
areas in Finland as well as that substantial development
inverters, storage systems, energy management, home
is being seen in such areas as smart grid and thus these
automation, metering and communication, and waste
areas hold significant business potential also relevant
management. Implementation wise complementary
from the solar energy perspective.

Main value networks

Raw materials Manufactoring Manufactoring Balance of system Reuse and recycling

coponents solar panels technology

Figure 7. Solar power value network

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Solar power has an important role and subsequently

many interconnections to the value network presenting
the so called new energy system which reflects the
electrification of the society. The most important sector
couplings of solar power sector to other sectors in that Power to X Solar power Microgrids
value network are presented in Figure 8. Solar power can
be in a significant role for example in connection to the
emerging energy communities and smart grids. Solar
electricity is one of the main potential renewable energy
production alternatives when producing energy to such
energy carriers or energy vectors as hydrogen as part of
the new so called Power-to-X energy systems in global
scale. Power-to-X ecosystem is covered in more detail Electric Charging
in another study commissioned by Business Finland.17 vehicles infrastructure Grid
The wide area of energy storage and batteries is another
important sector having significant interface to the solar
electricity production. Batteries were covered in detail
in a previous study for Business Finland.18 Thus these
mentioned wider value network areas were left out from
this study as such but the interface and connections of
solar energy to them are considered.
Demand Energy
Traffic response Storage communities

Figure 8. Solar power sector coupling. Direct connections to solar power marked with consistent line and other
connections with dashed line.
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One example of significant connections between these

different sectors and in particular between solar energy
and the smart energy systems is presented in
Figure 9. As can be seen in the figure, there are already
a large quantity of solar PV system retailers in Finland
as well as smart energy service providers in general.
Notable from the figure is that the variety of
these smart energy service providers is large
and that there are also a large number of such
retailers that are not yet interconnected to
solar energy. This group obviously presents a
potential from the solar energy market point
of view.

Figure 9. New energy system actors in Finland.19

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During this study a total of 55 companies in Finland Finland has a 150-200 year long engineering tradition20,
were recognized as being part of the solar energy value and the technology industry is the most important export
network. These companies are presented in Figure 10 industry in Finland. Technology companies make up over
below. These numbers and the list are not exhaustive. 50% of all

Figure 10. Solar value network companies in Finland.

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Figure 11. Solar technology Finnish exports, and more than 300,000 persons distribution largely reflects Finland’s engineering
value network in Finland.
*These companies provide
work in technology companies, while a total of around tradition, as well as recent decades global position as a
system design, installation 700,000 people work in the technology sector either country strong and on the forefront of digital and smart
and maintenance considering directly or indirectly21. solutions and services. The market actors consist of a
the energy system for the cus- handful of larger companies and a long list of smaller
tomer. Customer is typically a
housing cooperation, industri- Of the companies active within the PV energy system in ones. There are only a few companies that could be
al building etc. **These com- Finland, the largest number are active within installation considered medium sized e.g. Danfoss, Wapice, Ensto.
panies provide design service, and maintenance as is presented in Figure 11. This
installation and maintenance
for PV systems.
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With the trend of increase of solar PV across the world

it is no surprise that the development is also mirrored
in the Finnish market landscape, and a number of
companies are providing solar energy either as a stand-
alone service or bundled with other energy related
services. Figure 12 and Figure 13 compares the financial
performance of a selected number of companies.

The market exhibits a presence of both large established

companies as well as newer smaller enterprises, and
in particular the latter group has during the past
years experienced a significant increase in growth. Figure 12. Financial performance of selected companies in the solar technology value chain in Finland
(CAGR 2015-2019 vs. EBIT-% 2019; company size is indicated by the size of the sphere)
However, despite the growth of these small enterprises,
the operating profits are not as healthy as with more
established actors, and some small companies are
currently operating at a deficit. Larger companies
might experience not as large percentage increase
in turnover but in turn deliver more stable financial
operating returns. Selected KPI’s of mid-sized and small
companies are presented in Figure 13.

Figure 13. Financial performance of selected companies in the solar technology value chain in Finland,
larger actors and outliers excluded (CAGR 2015-2019 vs. EBIT-% 2019; company size is indicated by the
size of the sphere)
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2.3 COMPANIES AND OTHER ACTORS Danfoss Power Solutions25 is a world-class provider
WITHIN THE SOLAR ENERGY VALUE NETWORK of mobile hydraulic and electrification products and
IN FINLAND solutions. Danfoss is actively developing datadriven
digital services for drives using information collected
In the following a short description of selected solar from the drives. This improves energy efficiency of
power value network actors in Finland are provided. the applications, decreases emissions and reduces
Actors are grouped into balance of system technology, maintenance needs. It also provides new possibilities
energy utilities, system service providers, installation to monitor the process and application at the level of
and maintenance. System service providers offer energy each actuator26. Danfoss Finland is also part of the
system design for example industrial buildings or for “The Intelligent Industry Ecosystem” of top Finnish
housing cooperative. Their offer may include other than companies pursues growth through better utilization of
solar technology as well. Installation and maintenance data and AI, leading to tens of thousands of new jobs,
main focus is designing, installing and maintaining saving energy and combatting climate change.
solar systems.
Ensto Finland provides smart electrical solutions for
BALANCE OF SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY electricity distribution networks, buildings, marine
Fimer (former ABB)22 is a leading global and electric traffic. Ensto is currently building its
manufacturer of inverters for utility scale solar systems. own solar power plant to its headquarters in Porvoo,
The main product consists of, besides the hardware, Finland, which will cover part of its factory’s electricity
most importantly of the control system including production and serve as a test field for Ensto’s product
simulation models, testing and verification and service development, with an estimated annual output of
contract. In 2020, ABB completed its divestment of its approximately 130,000 kWh (152,000 Wp). Ensto sees
solar inverter business to the Italian company FIMER that smart solutions are needed to balance electricity
SpA23. Significant part of this former ABB and now production and consumption. Together with the solar
Fimer solar PV inverter business is based in Finland, panels, a battery energy storage system with inverter
mainly the global utility scale product management and units will be installed, which will enable smart energy
business development. In particular, Fimer now owns management of the building in the near future. In
and runs in Finland the R&D, testing and certification addition to electricity generation, the solar power plant
laboratories for which significant investments were will act as a test environment for Ensto’s own product
made in 201624. development27.
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Wapice is a Finnish full-service software company panel performance. The export objective of SaloSolar is
whose solutions are used by domain leading industrial to sell PV panels and PV panel lines and panel factories,
companies around the world. The company offers close as our factory line has attracted a lot of interest in the
technology partnership and digital services, and seeks international market.
to make the best use of digitalization opportunities. We
enhance our customer’s business and bring them to the Savosolar is a Finnish company that manufactures
forefront of digitalization. internationally award-winning solar thermal collectors
with the highest energy efficiency and energy density
MANUFACTURING SOLAR PANELS in the market. Savosolar seeks to provide the world’s
Naps Solar Systems supplies high-quality photovoltaic most efficient energy supply at the lowest energy cost.
systems for home, leisure, business use and demanding The company focuses on solar thermal collectors for
conditions with four decades and over 250.000 large scale systems, invented by a group of Finnish
installations experience28. Naps use chain-specific entrepreneurs and engineers who wanted to use their
optimization or module-specific optimization. Naps coating expertise to make a difference by offering the
sees that module specific optimization in Finnish world better and cleaner energy solutions. Savosolar also
conditions is seldom economically viable in the long has representation in Germany, Denmark and France,
run, because in module-specific optimization, the and is a listed company.
number of separate electricaldevices required for the
system increases and thus increases the need for Valoe is a Finnish company that manufactures IBC
maintenance29. solar cells, solar panels and Odd Form-solar panels.
Valoe providers installations services with traditional
SaloSolar is a manufacturer of solar photovoltaic solar panels or integrated solar panels. Valoe has strong
panels in the ASTRUM-center, Salo, Finland. The factory R&D effort and is involved in Horizon 2020 HighLite
was established in 2015 and it manufactures solar development program of which purpose is to produce
photovoltaic panels in the size of 1,6 m2 and 2 m2; 270 environmental friendly European solar panels with high
/ 330 W. Each of our solar panels is tested electronically, quality. Valoe is a listed company.
allowing us to guarantee top quality and efficient solar
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ENERGY UTILITIES Kymenlaakson Sähkö (KSOY) is an energy group

Caruna distributes electricity and maintains, repairs owned by 10 towns and municipalities in Eastern
and builds a weatherproof electricity network for its Finland. The company’s distribution area has some
approximately 700,000 customers in South, Southwest 150,000 residents, and sells electricity to more than
and West Finland, as well as in the city of Joensuu, the 100,000 customers. KSOY has productified its solar
sub-region of Koillismaa and Satakunta. energy offering into a service called “Oma solar” a
complete package of solar panels aimed towards
Fortum Power and Heat operates as an energy households, businesses and farms. The photovoltaic
company. The Company manages power plants which system includes software that allows users to monitor
generates and sells electricity and heat. Fortum Power the output of the system.
and Heat serves customers in Finland30. Fortum offers
solar solutions to private and business customers, Lemene. Energy Self-Sufficient Lempäälä is a project
including offer turnkey deliveries, where the company of Lempäälän Energia Ltd. It has been chosen as one
delivers and installs solar panels onsite31. of eleven key projects concerning renewable energy and
new technology in 2017. As a key project, Energy Self-
Helen offers its customers electricity, district heating Sufficient Lempäälä has been granted an investment aid
and district cooling, along with a wide range of services from The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment
for small-scale energy production and the customers’ (MEAE). The key projects focus on future energy
own energy use and improving its efficiency. Helen solutions so that Finland can achieve its national
produces energy at its power plants and heating plants targets and those laid down at EU level for 2030. The
located in Helsinki, as well as through its power assets. project objective is to create an energy self-sufficient
Helen Ltd is owned by the City of Helsinki, and aims to business district in the Marjamäki industry area in the
achieve 100% carbon neutrality in its energy production. municipality of Lempäälä.
The company has over 450,000 customers throughout
Finland. Helen provides solar solutions for both The energy is going to be produced using renewable
households and companies. energy sources, such as solar power and biogas. There
will be a 4 MW solar power plant (2 MW + 2 MW), gas
engine capacity of 8,1 MW, and fuel cell solutions
providing a total of 130 kW.
 21

Oomi Energia is one of Finland’s largest electricity produced solar energy for its customers with full-service
sales companies, and is owned by: Vantaan Energia, package. The company built more than 40 solar power
Lahti Energia, Pori Energia, Oulun Seudun Sähkö and plants built in 2019, totaling 27 MW.
Oulun Sähkönmyynti Oy and its shareholders: Oulun
Energia, Tornion Energia, Haukiputa Sähköosuuskunta, Solarvoima is a Finnish expert company specializing
Raahen Energia, Rantakairan Sähkö and Tenergia. Oomi in solar panel systems. The company focuses on solar
has more than 400,000 customers and employs about panel deliveries of detached houses and commercial
40 people, and offers installation and operation of PV properties on a turnkey basis.
solutions.
Solnet Group is a leading Smart Solar Solutions
INSTALLATION & MAINTENANCE provider offering IoT enabled solar utilities and systems
Freebo is a Finnish solar power company that supplies integrations for B2B customers easily, conveniently
high-quality solar power plants for detached houses and and cost efficiently as a managed service and turn-
small properties in Finland and Sweden. The company key solutions. Solnet Group offers Turn-Key solutions
helps people save the environment with sustainable and for sustain able and reliable energy production and
easily available solar energy solutions. Solar PPA’s below grid parity throughout Europe. From
financing to hardware procurement, installations to
Solar factory sells and delivers both grid-connected repairs, we take responsibility for everything based on
on-grid and independent off-grid solar panel systems our customers needs.
installed and ready for use. The company serves both
private consumers and industry, agriculture and Sun Energia is a Finnish clean-tech start-up founded
business premises. Solar factory delivers the systems in June 2014. The company seeks to generate unbiased
installed, manage local licensing issues, handles information about solar power and speed up the
communicate with the network company, guides the growth of the solar power market. Sun Eneriga provides
operation, and monitors the electricity production. The property owners with high-quality, reliable information
company seeks to be a pioneer in new technology and about the solar radiation their roof receives and the true
microgeneration trends. solar production and savings potential of each building.
The company aims to be Europe’s largest producer of
Solarigo Systems is a Finnish energy company offering location-based renewable energy data.
renewable solar power. The company offers locally
 22

Suomen Aurinkotekniikka is a growth company SYSTEM SERVICE PROVIDERS

operating in the field of renewable energy, and deliver GreenEnergy Finland33 (GEF) plans and delivers solar
systems using renewable energy sources as a turnkey power solutions to private houses and big megawatt-
service. This means that the company designs the class solar power plants. The GEF Vision service is an
system, installs it ready for use, and takes care of all example of the company’s unique product development.
required permits32. The service allows customers to minimise the share of
electricity they sell back to the grid to get the most out
Sähkö-Satek is a company specializing in electrical of their solar power plant.
renovations, electrical installations and photovoltaic
systems for detached houses. From the very beginning, Playgreen Finland provides experienced and expert
the basic idea has been to improve the electrical safety know-how for the procurement of photovoltaic systems,
and energy efficiency of detached houses. charging points and energy storage. The company offers
tailor-made packages to a wide range of user groups
e.g. private businesses, farms, individuals and housing
companies34.
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3 COMPETENCES, TECHNOLOGIES, R&D AND PILOTS

IN SOLAR ENERGY IN FINLAND

3.1 PILOTS AND DEMONSTRATIONS CARRIED A project for developing demand response for solar
OUT IN FINLAND thermal was conducted 2013-2017 by a number of
companies including Oulun Energia and Savosolar
There are a few pilot projects that have been carried and funded by Business Finland37. The findings from
out in Finland during the past years, some of which are this project are now being utilized in a new, still on-
described below. Overall, several installations35 have going project in which Oulun Energia and Savosolar
been implemented by different parties, the following are developing demand response services. Focus on
present some examples of those. this new project is to demonstrate the benefits of solar
thermal integrated with demand response.
In the LEMENE -project an isolated energy community
was piloted. An energy community with a distributed The Finsolar research project carried out several solar
energy system consisting of solar power, gas motors energy pilots during 2010-2019 and involved about 50
and hydrogen fuel cells as energy production methods partners. For example, a model for sharing solar power
was implemented.36 The project finished in year 2019. within a housing cooperation was implemented.38 The
A particular aim of this study was to pilot energy aim for the pilot was to create a nationally scalable,
communities that produce electricity with solar and replicable and economically viable model for the
balance the system with batteries and gas network. In production of solar electricity by the residents of
the occasion of transmission power outage, this energy housing associations.
community is able to operate as an isolated island with
self-sufficient energy.
 24

The Smart Otaniemi project39 funded by Business also aims to combine Controlled Growth Platform
Finland pilots for example integration of prosumers and technology/modules for agricultural food production
hybrid energy systems and also aggregator business patented by the company Hybrid-Power Finland. The
models. The project gathers a multitude of companies, modules are to be installed between the solar panel
research organizations, and building and infrastructure lines and will utilize the produced solar power to for
owners to conduct various pilots to find smart solutions example optimize light conditions with IoT technology.
for future technologies.
A concept that is currently being planned for is to utilize
An interesting idea is to utilize the vast land area closing peatlands in Finland for solar power production.
around large wind parks for solar power installation. One One such project that is in planning is the Heinineva
such pilot that has been inaugurated in August 2016 peatland in Lapua in Western Finland.43 The industrial
is the Mäkelänkangas solar power park in the Hamina size power plant is being planned by EPV Energia Oy.
region in Eastern Finland which is built in the area The plan is to cover the 170-ha peatland with 300 000-
of the existing Mäkelänkangas wind park. The park is 400 000 solar panels to produce 80-100 MW of power,
commissioned by Suomen Voima Oy which is a company corresponding to power production of 20 windmills. The
owned by several small regional energy companies. The company has received permission to continue planning
park hosts 2784 solar PV panels with the nominal power of the solar power plant and next step will be to draft
production capacity of 0,725 MW and annual production the construction plan. The power production is aimed
of 650 MWh.40 to start by the end of the decade 2020. The company
expects that with the current prerequisites, reaching
Another installation project that is under construction profitability for such large-scale solar power plant in
combining wind and solar power production, is the Finland is a challenge. However, with the constantly
Kalajoki Läntinen Renewable Energy Park in Western improving efficiencies in new panel technologies the
Finland due to be finished maybe 2021.41 The aim situation is changing developing towards favoring also
with the solar power is to reach 11 MWp nominal power solar power production in as far north as Finland.
production capacity with 40 000 installed solar panels.
The park is being built by Hybrid-Power Finland.42
Another interesting feature in this park is that it
 25

3.2 TECHNOLOGIES AND R&D minimize cut edge losses and will contribute to indoor
characterization, outdoor demonstration, and cost
The Finnish tradition of being an engineering nation is
and life cycle analyses50 and thus has a significant
also visible in the context of strengths at technology
technology development, implementation and
level. Concerning cells and modules, bulk of the
commercialization role in the project.
small production quantities in Finland or by Finnish
companies is based on state-of-the-art technologies.
The few major R&D projects in Finland are conducted
An exception to this is for example the company
mostly by Aalto University and Lappeenranta University
Valoe, which is investing in technology development
of Technology (LUT) and VTT. At Aalto University,
for application areas in the niche markets. They are
research is done on different materials for solar PV
developing so called odd form cells and modules with
cells and modules to utilize new printing technology to
qualities that endure the requirements of the Vehicle
manufacture transparent solar panels to be installed in
Integrated PV market or VIPV44. This development
windows51.
they are doing for example together with a Munich
(Germany) - based startup car manufacturer Sono
At LUT research is conducted on new energy systems and
Motors that aims at starting the production of its solar
sector coupling. For example, in the Soletair project, a
EV car Sion at the former SAAB factory of Trolhättan,
system producing carbohydrates from renewable energy
Sweden in 2022 45,46 47,48 .
such as solar power was developed by LUT and VTT
together.52 A spinoff utilizing this developed technology,
Valoe is developing its cell and module technologies
Soletair Power53, was created in 2019 gaining significant
partly also in the context of the EU project HighLite49.
seed funding from Wärtsilä54.
The project aims to substantially improve the
competitiveness of the EU PV manufacturing industry
Fimer (former ABB) develops inverters for solar power
by developing knowledge-based manufacturing
technology and they have constant R&D development
solutions for high-performance low-cost modules
on-going.55
with excellent environmental profiles. The project will
focus on bringing two competing technologies to high
The expectation is that the growing market of solar
technology readiness levels (TRL 6-7). Valoe focuses in
power installations will in the coming years also spur
the project on improvement of its production tool of IBC
new research and development in the solar sector. The
Module assembly for standard and custom applications
vast number of currently rather small installation and
(such as BIPV & VIPV). Further, Valoe will develop a
service companies will gradually seek growth which
new assembly concept, based on far smaller cells (16th
for example innovations in related to the system
of a cell, or similar) based on experience in automation
integration and installation of the systems might bring
in electronics industry. Valoe will work on solutions to
to them.
 26

4 KEY POLICY, LEGISLATIVE AND

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR SOLAR
ENERGY AND FUTURE LEGISLATIONS

4.1 WINTER PACKAGE EU The EU Commission has in 2016 issued new proposals
for amendments to facilitate the transition to a clean
Europe is a continent set to be climate-neutral by
energy economy. The package called “The Clean Energy
205056 . The current legal frameworks for energy
for All Europeans”59, also called “The Winter Package”,
markets in all Nordic countries are designed to fulfil the
aims to reform the design and operation of the
requirements of the regulations of EU’s Third Energy
European Union’s electricity market. The amendments
Package57 described in the EU directive 7258 published
are scheduled to come into force starting from 2020.
in 2009.
The Winter package aims to transition the Europe to a
The directive states that the EU internal energy market
low carbon economy by 2050. EU citizens as well as
is built on well-established principles, such as the right
industrial users should over time switch to electricity
of access for third parties to electricity grids, free choice
not only as a source of light, heating and cooling but
of suppliers for consumers, robust unbundling rules,
also transportation. Electricity should in turn stem from
the removal of barriers to cross-border trade, market
low carbon sources, including non-fossil fuels such as
supervision by independent energy regulators, and the
hydro, solar and wind energy but also biobased sources
EU-wide cooperation of regulators and grid operators.
(e.g. biofuels, biomass and biogases)60. The Winter
Package could be divided into three main categories61:
 27

1. Proposals amending existing energy market shops for permit granting, with a time limit.
legislation
o New buildings and buildings undergoing major
a. Measures aiming to bring about a new renovation must incorporate minimum shares of
market design–also known as the market design renewables (RES; renewable energy source).
initiative (MDI) and amending and repealing
regulation on the internal electricity market and o There is an obligation to deploy RES volumes
electricity market liberalization measures after 2020, and there is a binding renewable
apacity target of least 27% renewables by
2. Proposals amending existing climate change 203063 (increased to 32% in RED II). Solar PV is
legislation one of the leading renewable technologies, and
this is likely to thrust solar power into a prefer
a. Measures aiming to better align and integrate red option 2020-2030. In 2030 almost half
climate change goals into the EU’s new market all electricity consumed in the EU will have to
design; includes a revised renewables directive come from solar, wind or other renewable
and revised energy efficiency directive electricity technologies.

3. Proposals for new measures • Smart home technologies and Internet of Things: EU
Member States could consider whether there is a need
a. New regulation on risk-preparedness in the for additional regulation on smart meters (in cases
lectricity sector and proposed regulation on where private solutions for meters are installed);
governance of the Energy Union. • Self-generation of electricity: For the self-generator
In its assessment of The EU Winter Package CEER to be able to feed excess electricity into the grid and
(Council of European Energy Regulators) highlights e.g. be financially compensated for it, they must sign a
the following issues to consider in relation to the market contract with a supplier that also sells electricity to
overall: the self-generator;
• Solar generated energy62: • Electrical energy storage: Customers’ improved
access to affordable energy storage may raise
o An obligation for EU Member States to always legislative issues regarding redistributive economic
provide visibility on support mechanisms for at effects. Similar to electricity generated from on-
least three years ahead mandatory one-stop site production, there is a matter of transparency
 28

as consumers may experience difficulties with provisions for electricity from renewable sources.
understanding the costs, risks benefits of energy Legislation change to distribute solar power production
storage; in housing cooperatives is implemented in the
• Charging stations and electric vehicles: A key beginning of the year 2021. This enables feasible solar
question is if the general consumer and competition power production also in housing cooperatives/housing
legislation is sufficient or is there a need for energy- companies as well as installing larger solar panel
specific rules in order to ensure an appropriate level systems for these65.
of competition; and,
4.2.1 FINNISH GOVERNMENT’S NATIONAL ENERGY
• Blockchain application in the energy market: The AND CLIMATE STRATEGY FOR 2030
emergence of blockchain to manage transactions,
together with the development of decentralized The Finnish Government published the National
initiatives in the energy sector may challenge Energy and Climate Strategy for 203066. New National
regulators’ traditional approach to data exchange, Energy and Climate Strategy is being prepared by the
centralized at DSO and market operator levels. It Government, and it will be published in fall 2021.67
also raises the question of whether it is possible to Current strategy outlines actions that will enable Finland
regulate this market, considering its decentralized to attain the targets specified in the Government
nature and possible lack of transparency resulting Program and adopted in the EU for 2030, and to
from peer-to-peer transactions. systematically set the course for achieving an 80−95%
reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050:
4.2 RENEWABLE ENERGY IN FINLAND • The strategy outlines that with minor exceptions,
In Finland, electricity from renewable sources is Finland will phase out the use of coal for energy by
promoted through a technology neutral tender based 2030;
premium scheme for electricity from wind, solar, • The minimum aim is to have 250,000 electric
biogas, biomass wood fuels and wave power and through and 50,000 gas-powered vehicles on the roads
a premium tariff for electricity from wind, biomass and (According to the new baseline forecast68 of
biogas. greenhouse gas emissions in transport, there would
already be about 350,000 electric cars in Finland
In Finland, the use of the grids for the transmission of in 2030, and the majority of these (approximately
electricity from renewable sources is regulated by the 290,000) would be chargeable hybrids. The report
general legislation on energy64. There are no special further comments that the target for electric cars
 29

needs could be significantly tightened, and a new • Eliminating regulatory barriers. Today, self-
target for electric cars in Finland by 2030 could be consumption of solar electricity in apartment
to set to 600,000-700,000 electric cars; with the buildings is only limited to the electricity needed
majority of these being fully electric cars); to power the common parts of building; however,
• The electricity market will be developed at the excluding dwellings. This regulatory regime is not
regional and the European level; encouraging adoption PV solar. Also, building
permitting and grid connections must be swift and
• The flexibility of electricity demand and supply and, agile;
in general, system-level energy efficiency will be
improved; • Promoting training and access to information. Those
seeking to engage with RES must have access to
• Technology neutral tendering processes will be current and accurate information; this is also crucial
organized in 2018−2020, on the basis of which for those wanting to establish energy communities;
aid will be granted to cost-effective new electricity
production from renewable energy; and, • Providing early stage funding. Dedicated finance
support schemes for energy communities are needed
• The share of renewable energy in the end both from national and regional bodies, e.g. to
consumption will increase to approx. 50 per cent and complete feasibility studies and expert consultancy;
the self-sufficiency in energy to 55%.
• Providing long-term and low-interest investment
4.2.2 COMMENT ON FINLAND AS ASSESSED BY THE funding schemes. For example, community energy
CONSORTIUM SMART ENERGY TRANSITION69 projects need dedicated financing instruments e.g.
low-interest state guaranteed loans and/or low-cost
Transitioning to a low carbon economy face numerous capital for community energy groups;
challenges in most of the countries, even including
those with more favorable policies like Germany and • Promoting cultural change. A cultural change is
Denmark, and there are clear cultural barriers observed required in the mindset of policymakers, especially
on the eastern side of the Baltic Sea. Recommendations regarding policy makers in the Eastern Baltic.
include: Community energy is an expression of a different set
of values and needs, and policymakers must realize
• Creating a stable policy framework for renewable that without citizens’ participation in the energy
energy investments. Given that many energy projects transition, ambitious climate goals may not be
valuate their viability over a long timeframe, e.g. achieved due to local resistance to renewable energy
electricity feed-in tariffs must be reliable and stable, projects.
and not subject to change at the time of investment
decision;
 30

4.3 EU TAXONOMY The performance thresholds will help companies,

The EU Taxonomy70 is one of the key defining factors project promoters and issuers access green financing
of sustainable finance in the coming years, and is a to improve their environmental performance, as well
tool to help investors, companies, issuers and project as helping to identify which activities are already
promoters navigate the transition to a low-carbon, environmentally friendly. In doing so, it will help to
resilient and resource-efficient economy. grow low-carbon sectors and decarbonise high-carbon
The Taxonomy sets performance thresholds (referred to ones.
as ‘technical screening criteria’) for economic activities
which: For electricity and heat generation activities, an ISO
14067 or a GHG Protocol Product Lifecycle Standard
• Make a substantive contribution to one of six compliant Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) assessment
environmental objectives including measurement of fugitive emissions is
required. There is an overarching technology-agnostic
1. Climate change mitigation; emissions intensity threshold of 100g CO2e/kWh,
2. Climate change adaptation; including for electricity production. This threshold
3. Sustainable and protection of water and marine will be reduced every five years in line with political
resource; targets set out to achieve net-zero emissions by 205071.
4. Transition to a circular economy; PV solar is currently allowed to derogate in terms of
5. Pollution prevention and control; and, performing PCF:s, but this could be subject to review
6. Protection and restoration of biodiversity and when the thresholds are lowered.
ecosystems.
• Do no significant harm (DNSH) to the other five, The taxonomy basically outlines what is meant by
where relevant; sustainable finance, and includes environmental,
social and governance (ESG) topics as integral part of
• Meet minimum safeguards (e.g., OECD Guidelines business and investment strategies. What is considered
on Multinational Enterprises and the UN Guiding sustainable or green in the finance industry, however,
Principles on Business and Human Rights). is defined by multiple international reporting and
governance frameworks.
 31

• Promoting cultural change. A cultural change is of values and needs, and policymakers must realize
required in the mindset of policymakers, especially that without citizens’ participation in the energy
regarding policy makers in the Eastern Baltic. transition, ambitious climate goals may not be
Community energy is an expression of a different set achieved due to local resistance to renewable energy
projects.

EU Taxonomy Task Force Climate Principles for Sustainability UN Sustainable

and Action Plan related Financial Responsible reporting to stake- Development Goals
Disclosure (TCFD) Investment (PRI) holders (e.g. GRI, UN (SDGs)
Global Compact

Frameworks provide common grounds

Cost saving Stakeholder Client interest in

communication and sustainable banking Employee attraction
opportunities and engagement
positioning and insurance
products

Alignment with the EU taxonomy provides new perspectives in seeking sustainable returns – Identifying sustainable
investment cases represents an opportunity to future prooging and positioning strategies as taxonomy-aligned

Figure 14. Sustainable finance framework, of which the EU Taxonomy is part

 32

4.3.1 PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY FROM SOLAR PV 4.3.2 PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICITY FROM

Note that production of electricity from solar PV is CONCENTRATED SOLAR POWER
unlikely to be performed in a way that substantially Any electricity generation technology can be included in
undermines climate change mitigation objectives (one the taxonomy if it can be demonstrated, using an ISO
of six environmental objectives listed above), as the 14067 or a GHG Protocol Product Lifecycle Standard-
life-cycle emissions will likely always fall well below the compliant Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) assessment,
substantial contribution thresholds recommended by that the life cycle impacts for producing 1 kWh of
the TEG72. The TEG therefore has not felt it necessary to electricity are below the declining threshold.
define a DNSH (Do no significant harm) threshold for Do no significant harm assessment. The main potential
this activity.Do no significant harm assessment significant harm to other environmental objectives from
CSP is associated with:
The main potential significant harm to other • The construction of the installation and the
environmental objectives from the installation and substantial land-take associated with the installation
operation of photovoltaic (PV) panels relate to:
• Impacts to birdlife from the high temperatures
• The PV installation siting: impacts on ecosystems generated by the plant
and biodiversity if built in a designated conservation
area or other areas with important ecosystem and • Impacts of the cooling system on water resources
biodiversity value.
• The impacts from the production and end-of-life 4.4 REUSE AND RECYCLING
management of the PV systems and its component/
materials: potentially significant environmental WEE directive requires solar panel manufacturers
impacts are associated with the sourcing/production to take care of recycling solar panels. Solar panels
of materials and components of PV systems (see can be recycled as electrical appliances.73 In general
‘Manufacture of Low Carbon Technologies’ for DNSH the decommissioned solar panels are being globally
criteria) considered as a ticking bomb and various ideas for
recycling options start to incur.74
 33

5 CONCLUSIONS

5.1 SUMMARY OF THE EXISTING AND FORE- application area might not be extremely big, if the
SEEABLE FUTURE BUSINESS AND INNOVATION Finnish companies are able to find business and
ENVIRONMENT OF SOLAR ENERGY IN FINLAND commercialization models not only from the point
of view of end products but also in terms of custom
In general, on the solar energy market, competing development and manufacturing process
with Asian producer on bulk products is not opening optimization and automation, the different niche areas
significant business opportunities for the Finnish solar together can constitute significant market opportunities.
energy companies. On technology level, especially in
the beginning of the value chain in cells and modules, Another competitive edge for the Finnish solar energy
niche application areas requiring specific qualities and solutions is taking environmental considerations as
custom made solutions, even if in the end applied in an integral part of the product concept. For example,
mass manufacturing applications, is a growing market considering harmful materials such as lead potentially
which Finnish actors are capable of catering with their present in cheap alternatives and making CO2 footprint
solutions. Finnish strengths in automation technologies calculations obligatory for the modules, would
further strengthens competitiveness building in such differentiate positively the Finnish module technologies
customized niche markets. and products on the market. Also, posing recycling
tax to used modules and requiring certificates for
Such emerging market is for example the vehicle recyclability would bring diverse decision-making
integrated PV or VIPV market. Another interesting indicators to the solar energy investments compared to
growing niche market with very specific and tough that currently price is the main aspect used in decision
PV cell and module requirements is the space making.
equipment and device market such as satellites and
satellite swarms. Even if the market for one particular
 34

Further along the value chain, business opportunities In general, the regulative environment is not viewed as
for Finnish companies exist in the micro- and minigrid posing significant challenges to the market actors for
solutions development as well as on the system the implementation of solar power. However, incentives
management level. Finland could constitute a lucrative to support small-scale production would boost the
pilot environment for micro- and minigrid solutions and market further. This could be done for example by
systems development which then could find significant regulation. In addition, harmonization is called for to
market potential for example in the developing markets the cross-cutting authorities’ operations. Solar capacity
such as Africa or India. increase is calling for increased building integration or
BIPV implementation. To ensure the increase of BIPV
In the bigger picture, although focus is more and more solar capacity, there is a need to integrate solar panel
placed on renewable energy and climate change and its installations to the building planning and construction
mitigation and adaptation, Finland is still reliable on process. Also, hybrid solutions, such as aggregation
nuclear energy. Also, the current energy mix in Finland of storage solutions with BIPV and energy automation
is very price competitive, which means that renewable with building automation create new technology
energy alternatives, including solar PV, must be and opportunities in the solar sector. Sector coupling is also
remain price competitive in order to have a chance of needed in agriculture sector, for example when utilizing
success (provided that feed-in tariffs are not employed). agricultural land and buildings jointly for livestock and
solar power production. Combining solar heating and
In order to gain the most out of the growing solar cooling to new storage alternatives posed by Power2X
energy market, attention should be paid in Finland can create new business opportunities. However, to
to strengthen the horizontal competencies such as leverage these cross-sectoral opportunities to their
business development and integration of expertise full potential, also regulative aspects need to be paid
between different market segments, e.g. electricity attention to.
markets, property automation development and energy
storage solutions, and competence to communicate 5.2 POSITIONING OF SOLAR INDUSTRY IN FINLAND
and disseminate about the solar power to various AS PART OF THE EU DEVELOPMENTS
stakeholders such as politicians and the general public. In general, Finland and the Finnish solar energy
actors should be more active in the EU networks and
 35

participating in the EU projects. If for example a standardization work is also a window of opportunity for
Finnish SME is commercializing specific solar energy the Finnish companies to network with possible partners
technologies, participation in EU project and networks and customers on European and even global level.
brings opportunities to, on one hand, finance the Participation of research actors will give the possibility
development investments to be made, and on the other to showcase the strong knowledge basis of the Finnish
hand, build networks to future customers and partners. actors. Altogether, such visibility of Finnish actors
Active participation in the EU clusters could be seen as can also positively strengthen the image of Finland in
staying informed and also being able to influence future general as viable alternative for FDI activities.
market opportunities, enabling to build awareness and
brand on one’s offering and capabilities in front of 5.3 STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE FINNISH
potential future customers and partners. Market actors SOLAR ENERGY VALUE NETWORK
perceived that at the moment Finland is fast adapter to Perceived strengths and weaknesses of the Finnish
the solar trends and directives coming from EU but not solar energy value network are presented in Table 1
a contributor leading the solar market development in below. The perception on the strengths and weaknesses
EU. vary according to the organisation and its position in
the value network, however, in the table a general view is
Another important issue is the participation of taken.
Finnish companies and other relevant entities in the
standardization work related to solar power but also As a summary, strengths are seen especially in
to the entire system and its control including storage technological readiness and competencies also beyond
and microgrids etc. For example, Fimer is actively immediate solar energy focus, and in research and
participating in such work. This work can be correlated project management capabilities. Main weaknesses are
to former work done by Nokia in contributing to the seen regarding geographical location, political support
creation of telecom standards. Contributing actively to and the small size of the market.
the standardization work will ensure that the Finnish
companies develop their technologies to such direction
that will maintain and increase their competitive
edge in the vast emerging markets of renewables
utilization and Power2X development. Participation in
 36

5.4 BUSINESS, COLLABORATION AND JOINT-VENTURE

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES OPPORTUNITIES IN SOLAR ENERGY IN FINLAND
The niche technology know-how as a strength for
• Stable electricity markets and strong • Finland’s geographical location, and
overall connectivity winter conditions for producing solar
the Finnish solar energy sector entails new kind of
energy business model possibilities with European and even
• Readiness to apply balance
global companies. For example, application area
management and demand response • Lacking economy of scale in
on the electricity market developing solar due to small specific companies in new technology areas, such as
market size, dispersed knowledge storage solutions or VIPV technologies, tend to still
• Excellent capabilities, know-how and
technologies for system level design
and mostly small-scale industry be startups or small ventures along the side of major
operations in the context of the solar bulk conventional business areas. In these business
• Excellent technical know-how sector settings the technology and business risks are such
regarding smart digital solutions
and their development
• Solar energy not regarded as a viable high that, in order to enter to the market, risk sharing
alter-native and thus not given due is required. Risk sharing can be accomplished for
• Long traditions on R&D of solar attention on political and societal example by jointly forming a joint venture company
energy systems and components level, e.g. in regulative work
for the commercialization of the product, instead of
• Well-established engineering and • Proper industry participation in the conventional format of selling technology or final
project management know-how the stand-ardization work related
products to the end customer. Another business format
to solar power and its utilization as
• Market growth potential
part of the changing energy system,
can be that when selling the technology or product,
• With the development of solar and subsequent potential compati- part of the revenue is based on royalties of the use of
technologies and with rising costs bility issues for Finnish products on technology and thus the income will increase if the end
for fossil-based energy solar energy the market; also missing potential product, such as a car, sells well on the market. These
is increasing gaining economic opportunity to take a leading role on new business formats require very close business and
viability as an alternative in Finland electricity system level development
innovation development partnerships between the
technology providers and end users.
Table 1. Strengths and weaknesses in Finnish market
Finland could act as a pilot test bed for hydrogen
economy solutions as well as micro- and minigrid
solutions. Finland has all the prerequisites to effectuate
 37

such pilots and as such give a marketing lookout for the know-how is utilized to develop export markets for solar
Finnish technologies and knowhow as well as provide heating in the context of district heating elsewhere, for
a kind of soft landing opportunity for non-Finnish example in Denmark and France, but such markets have
technologies and companies to test and build partner- not yet emerged in Finland. To create such markets also
ships with the Finnish companies and other actors. in Finland, pilots would be needed in which combination
of solar heat technology and storage solutions would be
The solar projects are growing in size also in Finland implemented.
which means new business models and ownership of
the project and investments compared to small e.g. In general, there is a need for such ecosystems in
residential projects. Such projects in some sense and Finland that would bring together small-scale and
extent start to resemble wind project developments large-scale actors to develop commercial and scalable
even if the scale is smaller in general. There is good solutions for solar energy pilots including both solar
know-how and proficiency in Finland to conduct large technologies as well as knowledge on balance of
scale projects and their project management. Such systems perspective. Such business ecosystems would
large, more than 100 MW solar power plants are calling form a proper platform for possible joint-ventures and
for national grid connection and for example Nordic FDI activity as well as exports.
collaboration to enable selling the electricity produced
to the NordPool power market to gain economic 5.5 KEY RATIONALE FOR FDI
feasibility. Also new kind of financing solutions will Key rational for FDI activities is created through
be needed including engaging investors to drive such widening the viewpoint in Finland from immediate
project development. Such large-scale projects could solar energy, electricity and technology field to the
also be coupled under the Power2X project umbrella for perspective of utilizing solar technologies in different
pilot project development, prerequisites to develop such applications. Future potential is presented in for
projects exist in Finland. For example, combination example such application areas as solar technology
of existing infrastructure for gas network and solar integrated into buildings and cars and other vehicles.
technologies could be utilized as a platform for such Also, integration of solar technologies to some specific
projects, however, project executors and technology energy consuming operations within various industries
providers are needed. creates potential, such as usage of drones in logistics
or production of cold in the food and retail industry.
Solar heat is not as prevalent in Finland as solar Finland has good prerequisites from its long traditions
electricity and its application. Finnish district heating
 38

in engineering and electric engineering industries to power and solar heat technologies are already rather
enter these fields. Connecting these fields through for saturated and thus the focus should be put on new
example in facilitating ecosystem creation could spur applications and new technologies to be interesting for
such technology platforms that might be attractive and foreign investments.
visible also to foreign investors. Such ecosystems might
also spur startup culture to the solar energy field which In Figure 15 such short-term and long-term
is currently lacking such culture and undergrowth of developments in solar technology in Finland are
new business activities: startups are a good vehicle to indicated that give rational for foreign direct
showcase the Finnish know-how and innovations and investments. The developments are not presented in
as such getting attention of potential foreign investors. chronological order but rather scaled more coarsely to
Startup culture and new undergrowth is also needed something that will happen sooner and later.
since the global markets for basic applications of solar

Short-term Long-term

Big solar electricity Demand response Integrated building Commercializing R&D Integrated storage
project (50-100 MW) solutions automation to energy solutions solutions
with investor automation

Comprehensive smart Environmental aspects: Power to X solutions Demand for new

solutions including and Lifecycle costs integrated to innovations through
integrating hardware solar panels and appreciat- organic growth of system
Figure 15. Short- and software ing quality -increasing integrator companies
term and long- competitiveness of European
term trends in solar panel maufacturers
solar technology.
 39

5.6 SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS AND if there is at the same time clear indications that market
RECOMMENDATIONS opportunities continue to grow related to solar energy
The largest provider of solar panels globally and also and renewables in general.
from a national standpoint is China, although there
is solar panel manufacturing in Finland, as well as Many pilots and initiatives focus on electricity
in other European countries, such as Germany. New generation, also e.g. the creation of energy
European solar panel development and manufacturing communities. However, the use of solar PV together with
initiatives focus on non-silicon-based technologies, other sources of energy e.g. geothermal heat and/or
e.g. making use of perovskite75, but these are still to be other thermal related applications (e.g. pumps) are still
commercialized on a larger scale. Aalto University is in testing phases. Also, the use of solar PV for heating
also engaged in perovskite development, and there are water (for example for household use of indoor heating)
plans to scale up carbon based printed perovskite solar does not seem to be very prevalent yet.
cell technology76.
The number of solar PV installation in both commercial
Companies as well as academic institutions in the uses and for household applications have increased, but
value network’s thematic sections balance of system there is a clear call for larger scale either pilots and/or
technology and the complementary system service, solar farms. More large-scale solar plants would not only
installation and maintenance parts all report a turnover bring an increased volume of renewable energy to meet
coming from solar PV in the range of 1-5%. Although an increased demand, but would also allow for testing,
these percentages differ by a magnitude of about 10 development and implementation of commercial
compared with installed capacity in 2018 (Figure 4), the solutions related to smart solutions and efficient
conclusion still points to the same direction: solar PV energy community models. From a consumer point of
has not yet taken off ground in a big fashion in Finland, view solar PV might not yet bring particular economic
although there are number of pilots and installations benefit, but many still favour renewable solutions as
across Finland. part of an overall solution – connected to this is also
the notion that a solar PV installation might actually
Many companies irrespective of activity in the value also contribute to the increased value of property and/
network offer services related to installations in some or asset.Renewable, including solar energy technologies
way. The numerous service and installation companies are continuously advancing, and even though predicting
most likely will have an appetite to grow at some point the future has its challenges, some clear indications
in the future. Such growth thinking most probably spurs that give sight to the future are visible for the next 5-10
new innovation activity to support the growth, especially years perspective. Some of these are as follows:
 40

• Solar panels are becoming more and more of a bulk might clear to an expert, but an average consumer
good, a standard hardware part of the system entity, might not fully understand its meaning. Such
especially when considering large solar installations. customer-oriented perception can also contribute
At the same time however, profitable solar power in gaining needed political support for solar energy
plant might need optimization of the technology utilization in Finland.
utilized according to available solar intensities. On • There are clear opportunities for the Finnish solar
the niche side there is increasing room for customary energy related industry when focus is placed on the
application related solutions. entire system (e.g. balance of system technologies,
• Assuming that PV solar markets are growing also batteries, smart digital means and software) and its
in Finland, the focus will be towards building larger optimization and control.
entities as well as integration of energy storage
solutions into the system. Overall, the main actors in the solar power field seem
• Project operation becomes even more professional rather dispersed in Finland especially when considering
and industry becomes more standardized. Regulative the smart energy solutions and business as well as
and quality insurance processes become more sustainable renewable energy production systems
standardized. and business levels as indicated in Figure 1 in the
methodology-section of this report. The Business
• New renewable energy related technologies are Finland Smart Energy program is funding projects and
making inroads to the energy system, such as ecosystems creation that also consider solar energy
hydrogen. as part of the possible energy palette. However, in
• It is expected that during this decade large scale these activities, solar energy is a side issue and does
solar farms will make their entry also to Finland, not seem to be gaining such a role that the activities
e.g. in the range of 30-40 MW or up to 100 MW, would strengthen the solar energy cluster as such in
even if gaining profitability for such farms is more Finland. Some kind of ecosystem creation around the
challenging in Finland and in some more solar solar cluster in Finland, building it especially from the
intensive geographical locations. solar point of view and business oriented in nature, for
example as test beds for developments that cater global
• A change will be needed towards customer-oriented emerging and growing renewable energy markets or
solution development: offerings must be better than some growing niche areas that utilize solar power, could
currently tailored to mirror the way consumers (not strengthen the visibility of all relevant Finnish actors
experts) reason. For example, the notation of “kWh” in European and global markets beyond solar including
system control and storage technologies. This could
result in both increased export opportunities as well as
positive attention towards possible FDI activities.
 41

6 APPENDIX

6.1 APPENDIX 1: LIST OF INTERVIEWEES

1. Fimer
2. Caruna
3. Fortum
4. Valoe
5. Naps Solar
6. Lappeenranta University of Technology LUT
7. Lemene/Lempäälän Energia
8. YIT
9. Wapice
10. Savosolar
 42

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 44

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