Implementation of EC Directives

Implementation of EC Directives

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

A.

Act on Energy Certification of Buildings (13.4.2007/487)

Act

Ministry of the Environment

existing

Quotations from the measure

The European Union's Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings (2002/91/EC) was implemented in Finland through the Act on Energy Certification of Buildings and Ministry of the Environment Decree on Energy Certification of Buildings (765/2007). The Act and Decree came into force on 1 January 2008. The national building regulations on energy efficiency were also made more precise with the implementation.

The act involves new energy certificates for buildings, which would have to be obtained whenever a building is taken into use, sold or rented out. The new certificates describes buildings' overall energy efficiency, and highlight opportunities for improvements.

Energy certificates are compulsory for all new buildings and many existing buildings. They are optional for existing detached houses and residential properties consisting of no more than six homes. Certificates are not required for holiday homes or smaller buildings.

Energy certificates are valid for 10 years for most buildings, and 4 years for new apartment blocks and commercial buildings.

The new certificates rate the energy efficiency of buildings on a scale from A-G, similar to the system already used to rate domestic fridges and freezers, with A-rated properties being the most efficient.

Certificates for new buildings will be provided by the buildings' designers. Certificates for existing housing companies will be included in the property managers' certificates provided by the property manager or the chairperson of the board of the housing company. The certificates issued in connection with energy efficiency surveys are to be provided by the surveyors.

Separate certificates may only be issued by legally empowered persons with appropriate professional qualifications.

A decree covering the evaluation of buildings' energy efficiency came into action along the new act on energy certification. Evaluations are based on official estimates or the recorded energy consumption rates of buildings.

When certificates are drawn up on a voluntary basis for existing detached houses or residential properties with no more than six homes, energy efficiency are estimated according to calculated consumption rates.

The legislation includes also an additional act on compulsory inspections of the energy efficiency of cooling equipment used in buildings' air conditioning systems. Such inspections would be compulsory for cooling equipment with a nominal cooling efficiency of at least 12 kilowatts, and will only be needed where cooling systems are based on the use of compressors. Such equipment should be duly inspected at least every ten years.

The Purpose of the measure

Implementation of the EU directive on the energy performance of buildings. Legislation is also aimed to promote energy savings that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the dependence on imported energy.

Around 30% of Finland's greenhouse gas emissions are produced in connection with the heating of buildings.

Impact of Measure

Energy certificates are new tool to promote energy efficiency so the impact remains to be seen. Revision of the directive and the national building code will tighten the regulation and requirements. The national building code revision requiring 30 % energy efficiency improvements for new buildings came into force Jan 1^st 2010. In 2012 the national building code will require further 20 % energy efficiency improvements from new buildings.

Effectiveness of the measure

DH especially from CHP plant has a strong performance if the energy certificate will put more weight on heating system’s primary energy consumption and the possible use of the renewable energy sources. Architects, contractors and homebuyers need a change of attitude in order to promote energy efficiency especially in apartment buildings and other large complexes. Single family house builders are more susceptible to different choices since they are building the house for themselves, make the heating choices and will pay the heating bill later.

IV. Implementation of EC Directive

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

B.

Government Decree on Verification and Notification of Origin of Electricity (1129/2003)

Decree

Ministry of Employment and the Economy

planned

Quotations from the measure

Directive 2004/8/EC on the promotion of cogeneration based on a useful heat demand in the internal energy market (Cogeneration Directive) has not changed much in the Finnish CHP or DH sector.

Implementation of CHP directive meant only the amendment regarding the Guarantee of Origin (GoO) of electricity in the Electricity Market Act, which came into force on July 1^st 2004. However, further degree on CHP GoO’s is still under preparation in January 2010. That is why, in November 2009 Finland received Commission’s Reasoned Opinion alongside with Portugal, Slovakia and the United Kingdom for failure to communicate the full transposition of the Directive on the promotion of cogeneration. CHP GoO will be added to the Government Decree on Verification and Notification of Origin of Electricity (1129/2003) in January 2010.

CHP in Finland received five out of five stars in IEA Country evaluation in fall 2008. The report can be found on http://www.iea.org/G8/CHP/profiles/Finland.pdf.

The Purpose of the measure

Just to fulfil the obligation of the CHP directive, So far, there is no real market for CHO GoO’s.

Impact of Measure

Effectiveness of the measure

No effect so far.

IV. Implementation of EC RES Directive

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

C.

Directive 2009/28/EC on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources (RES Directive)

Directive

Ministry of Employment and the Economy

existing

Quotations from the measure

Finland’s target according EC decision is to increase the share of renewable energy sources in total energy consumption to 38 % by 2020, compared to the 2005 level of 28.5 %. The most significant sources of renewable energy currently exploited in Finland are bioenergy (especially wood and wood-based by-products) and hydropower. Ground source heat, wind power and solar power are also exploited on a smaller scale.

Today as much as 70 % of the renewable energy used in Finland is derived from the wood-based by-products of industrial pulp and paper making processes. To reach our national target, Finland will have to increasingly exploit other sources of bioenergy (wood chips, wood pellets, energy crops and organic wastes), enhance the use of existing hydropower facilities, and urgently increase the use of wind power and ground source heat, while also realising energy savings that reduce the need to use fossil fuels.

The government’s most recent National Climate and Energy Strategy was introduced in Nov 6^th 2008.

In 2005, the final consumption of renewable energy sources was 86 TWh, and according to the baseline scenarios, their use in final consumption would increase to 106 TWh. According to the baseline, renewable energy sources’ share of final energy consumption would increase from 28.5% in 2005 to only some 31% in 2020, while the obligation proposed by the Commission for Finland is 38%.

According to the government the renewables target attainment fundamentally depends on having final energy consumption enter a downward trend. Finland’s natural resources would facilitate the additional use of renewable energy, but in order to realise this, the current subsidy and steering systems must be rendered more effective, and structures changed.

Measures will be an intense increase in the use of wood-based energy, waste fuels, heat pumps, biogas and wind energy. For instance, the use of forest chips will be increased by two or three times over current levels, and by 2020, some 6 TWh of wind energy will be harnessed for use, which would entail the construction of a minimum of 700 new 3 MW wind power plants in Finland.

Feed-in tariff system for wind power and biogas will be introduced presumably during 2010. Finland is preparing itself to meet the objectives set for renewable energy through its own measures, without the flexibility mechanisms between member states as planned for in the Directive.

There are several projects currently being carried out to build the supply chain of the wood based energy stronger and better available for energy production.

The changes in the guarantee of renewable electricity origin will be carried out in the Act and the Government Decree on Verification and Notification of Origin of Electricity (1129/2003). GoO system is issued by Fingrid, owner and operator of the Finnish main grid. Legislation can be found in English on http://www.fingrid.fi/portal/in_english/services/guarantee_of_origin_of_electricity/.

In fall 2009 the Ministry of Employment and the Economy announced that the renewable energy targets will not be met with current steering measures under development. New measures need to be developed.

In addition the structural change in the forestry industry is posing a major threat to renewables supply. The changes in the industry affects severely wood based CHP production.

The use of renewables still relies heavily on the industrial CHP, where the share of renewables is close to 80 per cent. In DH and DH related CHP electricity the share of renewable fuels was only 13 % in 2008. However, CHP and DH are in key position in obtaining the renewable targets. From the capacity point of view, use of wood could already be increased substantially. The main problem of increasing the share is the adequate and reliable supply of wood and wood residues in DH production scale.

The Purpose of the measure

To increase the use of renewables.

Impact of Measure

Any kind of mandatory requirements concerning use of fuels, make operations of a DH utility more difficult. This is due to limitation of available options.

Effectiveness of the measure

DHC has the biggest potential for additional use of RES. However, so far it hasn’t been commercially viable to take all the RES burning capacity in full use. ET allowance price should continuously be at least on the level of 25 € / CO2 tonne to make that happen.

Monitoring of, & Input to National Renewable Energy Action Plans

Ministry of Employment and the Economy will prepare national RES plan in spring 2010. The FEI will try to influence the preparation in such a way that the development of DHC will not be jeopardized. This would for example mean that governmental measures are not overlapping with existing measures like ETS and cost effectiveness should be appreciated.

Proposed Implementing Measures

Feed in tariffs for wind energy and biogas, still under preparation by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy. There are also several governmental working groups preparing ways of improving the logistics of wood energy supply. Decisions have to be made soon.

IV. Implementation of EC Directive

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

D.

The Energy Efficiency Agreement

Agreement

Ministry of Employment and the Economy

Existing

Quotations from the measure

Directive 2006/32/EC on energy end-use efficiency and energy services (Energy Services Directive) conferred a nine per cent energy conservation target upon Finland for the period 2008–2016, which, translated into energy, amounts to 17.8 TWh. The implementation is carried out in the Energy Efficiency Agreements as alternative to regulatory steering.

The preparation of the energy efficiency agreement in business and industry was done in co-operation of The Ministry of Employment and the Economy, the Confederation of Finnish Industries, and Motiva Oy with industrial associations and company representatives. The Framework Agreement was signed by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy and the Confederation of Finnish Industries in Dec 2007. The companies commit themselves to the associated branch-specific Action Plans. The company may join several Action Plans, if necessary. Government owned company Motiva Oy is responsible of the management of the action plans and agreements in close co-operation of the industrial associations.

Energy Efficiency Agreements cover several industrial branches, which join the system on voluntary basis. Branches include:

•energy-intensive industries

•energy production

•small and medium sized industries including food and drink industries, chemical industries, plastic industries, technology industries and wood product industries

•the services sector including the commerce sector and the hotel and restaurant sector

•energy services including transmission, distribution and retail of energy and district heating and cooling

•the municipal sector including cities, municipalities and joint municipalities

•oil heated buildings and distribution of liquid heating and transport fuels (Höylä III).

The energy services action plan can be found in English on http://www.motiva.fi/files/1442/Company_Accession_Document_for_the_Action_Plan_for_Energy_Services.pdf

Energy services action plan states for example:

The target of the sector requires that each Company sets an energy efficiency improvement target of at least 5 per cent. The target is determined from the energy data for 2005. The company-specific target will be specified further within two years of joining the agreement once the Company has identified the possibilities of improving the efficiency of its energy use.

As the Company’s energy use may increase due to growth in business operations, the quantity of energy consumption in 2016 is therefore not required to be 5 % lower than in 2008. In addition, so-called imputed saving, meaning the prevention or reduction of future consumption, which would be achieved without any measures, is also included as energy saving.

Minimum requirements for the energy efficiency improvement measures on the Customer’s energy

use:

• Energy efficiency communication to customers. In accordance with its Plan, the Company communicates on energy efficiency to its customers, for example, with brochures, in the customer magazine or on its website.
• Interactive energy-saving advice given to customers. In accordance with its Plan, the Company shall provide its customers with, e.g. telephone advice, a loan of consumer meters, energy consumption calculation and comparison services or other advisory services.
• Reporting on customer’s consumption. The Company shall draw up regular consumption reports to all its customers, based on actual consumption. Actual energy consumption means that the consumption report is based on actual readings of the energy meter, which is read either by the Company or the customer delivers the reading to the Company.
• Consumption comparisons with the customer’s previous consumption or other similar electricity or district heat customers are presented in the reporting. Various reporting methods may be used in the reporting. The reporting forms and contents are developed so that they serve the needs of various customer groups in the best possible way.
• Invoicing based on customer’s actual consumption. The Company invoices the customer based on actual consumption (2–12 times a year) when this has been agreed with the customer and the place of use has a remote-reading meter or the customer reports the reading of the energy meter to the Company. The distribution system operator is notified of the reading data of the electrical energy meter.
• Development and introduction of new energy services. The Company commits itself to innovatively developing new energy services and energy efficiency improvement measures for its customers. These may include:

• Promoting the use of energy-saving appliances in co-operation with appliance manufacturers

• Co-operation with interest groups, such as housing managers, maintenance companies, designers,

contractors, schools and energy agencies, as well as training related to the energy conservation of

interest groups

• Participation in energy efficiency campaigns

• Development and promotion of energy audits

• Connecting to district heat

• Annual reporting of energy services and energy efficiency improvement measures. The Company commits itself to reporting by the end of February each year on the previous year’s measures (quantitative data on energy efficiency improvement measures) and on implementing other activities related to the Action Plan into the joint monitoring system of the Energy Efficiency Agreement.
• Obligations to improve the efficiency of own energy use. The functional target of the agreement is to include constant improvement of energy efficiency as part of the management systems used or to be introduced by the Company. The Company commits itself to constant improvement of energy efficiency in separate production of district heat and in the transmission and distribution of district heat and electricity, as well as to other measures presented in this section related to the implementation of the agreement whenever it is economically possible taking safety and environmental aspects into account. Constant improvement of energy efficiency also requires the management’s commitment and a good energy procurement strategy and its implementation. A Company with separate production of district heat shall apply the procedures presented in the Action Plan for Energy Production with respect to its operations.

The Purpose of the measure

To fulfil the requirements of the Energy Service Directive.

Impact of Measure

It’s difficult to forecast technological development of end-use equipment and demand reduction possibilities. Makes planning more difficult.

Effectiveness of the measure

Because implementation is in an early phase, its premature to say that target savings will be reached.

IV. Implementation of EC Directive 2008/1/EC

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

E.

The Environmental Protection Act (86/2000)

Act

Ministry of the Environment

existing

Quotations from the measure

The Environmental Protection Act (86/2000) implements the European Union directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC), which obliges EU member states to integrate the control of emissions caused by industry.

The stipulations on environmental protection are combined in the Environmental Protection Act. It is a general act on the prevention of pollution, which is applied to all activities that cause or may cause environmental damage.

The principles of the Environmental Protection Act are:

• The prevention or reduction of harmful impacts (principle of preventing and minimizing harmful impact),
• The exercise of proper care and caution to prevent pollution (principle of caution and care),
• The use of the best available technique (BAT principle),
• The use of best practices to prevent pollution (principle of environmentally best use),
• Parties engaged in activities that pose a risk of pollution have a duty to prevent or minimize harmful impacts (polluter-pays principle).

The unofficial translations of the Environmental Protection Act and the Environmental Protection Decree are available in the Data Bank of Finnish Legislation:

Act http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/kaannokset/2000/en20000086.pdf

Decree http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/kaannokset/2000/en20000169.pdf

The Environmental Protection Act is based on an integrated system for environmental permits. With the integration of the environmental permits, pollution can be prevented efficiently since the environment is considered as a whole.

Applications for the environmental permits are made to one authority, and all the environmental effects of the activity will be assessed during the consideration of the permit. Technological solutions that save energy as much as possible and that are at the lowest possible cost will be applied to reduce emissions.

The act defines more explicitly, and in a more integrated manner, the requirements of environmental permits and the prerequisites for granting a permit.

There are four Regional State Administrative Agencies who decide on the most important environmental permits. Environmental permits of regional significance are still dealt with at the 13 regional Centers for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. Other environmental permits will be decided by the environmental protection authority of the municipality.

From the Finnish Energy Industries viewpoint the implementation of the IPPC directive has few specific problems regarding the energy sector. Firstly too tight emission limits will bring undue difficulties to peak-load and reserve boiler plants, and thus weaken the security of energy supply.

This is not necessary technically even possible, and in practice it brings unreasonable costs for old plants. According to a study commissioned by Finnish Energy Industries, investing in new technology would bring Finnish Energy Industries estimated costs of over a billion euro for old plants, at its tightest a considerable number of plants will have to be decommissioned. This will have the effect of increasing the price of energy, as capacity ”already paid for” is eliminated and new capacity will have to be invested in at great cost. The limit values in Annex V to the draft directive are definitely too strict for old plants to achieve, sufficient changes ought to be made to them so that the limit values would be technically possible to achieve.

Technical requirements updated at short intervals are not suitable for use in an investment-dominated sector like the energy industry. The plants' investment periods are long and costs high, they cannot be done for short periods of time and updated at indeterminate intervals. The operating environment has to be predictable. Old and existing plants should be taken into account separately in the limit values of the draft IPPC directive.

Secondly the Commission's so-called ”common stack” interpretation is also contrary to Finland's general stand and can thus not be accepted. The Commission's ”common stack” interpretation leads to technically senseless situations, in which a plant using even gaseous and solid fuel would be regarded as the same technical entity. The ”common stack” interpretation should be altered so that it does not apply to plants that have already been built.

IPPC directive poses also a problem for sparsely populated Finland. It is efficient to incinerate waste in large energy production plants along with other fuels, which means that, inter alia, long waste transport journeys are spared. Plants incinerating waste in parallel combustion are nevertheless penalised in the IPPC directive in the reduction of oxygen content in emission limit values. The emission requirements for waste combustion have to take into consideration the type of fuel.

Waste ceases to be waste when it has been purified and treated sufficiently. This view enters into effect with the new waste framework directive. The proposed plant entity of a parallel combustion plant defined by the draft IPPC directive would nevertheless appear to prevent it being possible to regard a plant incinerating pure fuel purified of waste as an LCP combustion plant rather than as a waste combustion plant.

In accordance with the plant entity definition, the entire plant would nonetheless be a waste combustion plant even if it incinerated fuel purified of waste if the waste purification into fuel is carried out in the vicinity of the plant. This contradiction has to be tackled and equal treatment guaranteed between combustion plants incinerating pure fuel.

The Purpose of the measure

To fulfil the IPCC directive.

Impact of Measure

Effectiveness of the measure

Its very strict and firm norm, which definitely leads to required emission reductions. The big question, is is it done cost effectively?

Heat losses?

Generally, heat losses are not directly part of environmental legislation. However, one of the requirements of an emission permit is to consider energy efficiency. Authorities accept joining the energy efficiency agreement as a sign of energy efficiency consideration.

IV. Implementation of EC Directive

Country

Finland

#

Name and reference of measure

Type of measure

Responsible organ

Existing or planned?

F.

Waste Legislation

Act and Gevernmental Decrees

Ministry of Environment

Existing

Quotations from the measure

Directive 2008/98/EC on waste (Waste Directive) has to implemented by national legislation by Dec 12.2010. In Finland the waste legislation reform has been in preparation from year 2007. An expert group will publish their proposal of the new legislation by April 30th 2010.

IPPC directive poses also a problem for sparsely populated Finland. It is efficient to incinerate waste in large energy production plants along with other fuels, which means that, inter alia, long waste transport journeys are spared. Plants incinerating waste in parallel combustion are nevertheless penalised in the IPPC directive in the reduction of oxygen content in emission limit values. The emission requirements for waste combustion have to take into consideration the type of fuel.

Waste ceases to be waste when it has been purified and treated sufficiently. This view enters into effect with the new waste framework directive. The proposed plant entity of a parallel combustion plant defined by the draft IPPC directive would nevertheless appear to prevent it being possible to regard a plant incinerating pure fuel purified of waste as an LCP combustion plant rather than as a waste combustion plant.

In accordance with the IPPC plant entity definition, the entire plant would nonetheless be a waste combustion plant even if it incinerated fuel purified of waste if the waste purification into fuel is carried out in the vicinity of the plant. This contradiction has to be tackled and equal treatment guaranteed between combustion plants incinerating pure fuel.

Almost 66 million tonnes of waste was generated in Finland in 2005. The figure does not include the manure used in agriculture and the cutting waste left in the forests. Of the waste generated, some 29 % was recovered as material and 14 % used as energy. The remaining 57 % ended up at landfills or was treated using other methods.

In 2005 there was only one combustion plant solely for solid municipal waste in Finland. The aim is to have 6-7 plants by 2016. 19 power plants were capable of parallel combustion of waste and other fuels. By 2016 the number of parallel combustion plants should be 15-25 according to the National Waste Plan for 2016.

(FE14/2009 Towards a recycling society, The National Waste Plan for 2016, pdf-version in English http://www.ymparisto.fi/download.asp?contentid=102639&lan=en).

The aim of the National Waste Plan 2016 is to stabilise the amount of municipal waste at the level of the early years of this century (2.3–2.5 million tonnes annually) and then ensure that the trend will be downwards by the year 2016.

Moreover, the aim is to ensure that in 2016, some 50 % of all municipal waste is recycled as material and 30 % used as energy. Not more than 20 % of the total should be land filled. Municipal waste is waste that is generated by households and similar waste generated in connection with industrial, service and other operations.

The aim is that all manure generated in connection with rural businesses would be recovered. Some 10 % of this amount or about 2.1 million tonnes would be treated in biogas plants at farms.

At the same time, incineration capacity required for energy use would be between 700,000 and 750,000 tonnes. This total includes waste incineration in incineration and co-incineration plants.

Currently the capacity of waste incineration is about 300000 t/a. There are several big incineration plants under planning and licensing. The total of the capacity planned would reach 1 350000 t/a if all projects should materialize.

For CHP and DH the waste incineration offers good opportunities to widen the fuel choices and supply. Economically waste fuels will not have a major impact on the DH cost efficiency but as a part of sensible and sustainable development of communal waste management plans the incineration plants are also economically viable for the utilities.

The Purpose of the measure

To fulfil the Waste directive.

Impact of Measure

Effectiveness of the measure