Leading Chinese manufacturers such as BYD, Yutong and Golden Dragon fulfill the rising procurement of electric buses in Finland, along with others in the region. BYD emerged as a major player of late. In 2021 the company contributed to the largest order from bus operator Nobina’s Finnish fleet. Other market players are finding similar traction as cities step up procurement. YES- EU’s delivery of 26 electric buses in 2022 for the city of Tampere is one more of the several examples of leading manufacturers securing orders from local authorities and transport operators. The momentum could rise with nearing of the European Union deadline for emissions.
Major expansion plans for charging stations are underway at the city of Helsinki. There are already 50 new charging stations to be deployed in 2023, based on previous year’s tender. Typically, the winning bid for charging station tenders entails securing lease for street space, for the development of network capacity. While public charging capacity continues to be emphasized, other Finnish enterprises are tapping into the demand for destination charging points, such as in commercial locations of retail, hotels, etc. The retail group Kesko for instance, has been augmenting its charging network, under the brand K-charging. As of mid-2022, the group had charging points across 107 locations in Finland and is in the process of doubling the capacity. Separately, Finland’s Motorists Association has undertaken a project to set up charging station in various municipalities, as part of its efforts to support the rising stock of electric vehicles. The plan is to set up about 100 charging stations of 80-100kW power rating.
Battery manufacturing is the most significant investment opportunity in Finland, with the capabilities and resources at disposal. Progressively, a cluster of such capacities are expected in the country, as more enterprises make the foray. The country’s battery strategy formulated by policy authorities seeks to utilize the advantages in sourcing and processing of raw materials and the production or related activities associated with battery materials and their recycling. In February 2023, the Finnish Minerals Group and FREYR Battery signed a joint development agreement for an LFP cathode material plant in the city of Vaasa. This is the largest such investment commitment in Finnish industrial manufacturing.
Other enterprises are taking initiatives in the battery ecosystem through new technologies. One such recent example is the sand battery. As of mid-2022, two Finnish companies Polar Light Energy and Vatajankoski deployed the world’s first operational sand battery, as an alternate option for renewable energy storage. The battery, storing heat within a sand tank, was installed at the energy company’s Vatajankoski’s power project. Though not exactly placed as a replacement option to the Lithium-Ion battery systems, sand batteries could offer alternate options for the heating and energy storage applications in residential and process-based industries. The battery processing and recycling segment is meanwhile gathering focus with most of the upcoming factories required to install such systems, as part of regulatory processes. Fortum’s battery material recycling plant in Harjavalta, Finland is one of the notable ventures in this context. The facility is aimed at catering to Finnish and Europe-wide battery manufacturing units through restoration of the critical materials involved.
