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4.8.2023 | Before Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, approximately one third of the energy used in Finland was imported from Russia. That share was reduced almost to zero in a few months, and the energy war launched by Russia increased consumer prices remarkably. As the energy markets have changed, it is the time to look how Russian energy was replaced and what more permanent effects trade changes will have.

14.7.2023 | Finland’s greenhouse gas emissions decreased by approximately 4% in 2022. The land use sector was a minor carbon sink. According to the Annual Climate Report, additional measures are needed particularly to strengthen the carbon sink of the land use sector to enable the achievement of the Finnish land use sector’s obligation set at the EU level. The achievement of the Finnish effort sharing sector’s obligation set at the EU level is also uncertain.

16.7.2021 | European Commission published new EU Forest Strategy on 16 July 2021, aiming for better coordination on forest-related initiatives as well as increasing the cooperation of Member States on forests. The Strategy highlights climate and biodiversity targets, which are important also for Finland. The strategy has evolved towards more balanced version during the preparation by the Commission, leaving however room for improvement in the initiatives to follow.

22.3.2022 | On Tuesday 22 March, the Climate Policy Roundtable discussed the climate plan for the land use sector. The discussions focused on the impacts of climate measures in the land use sector on biodiversity and the need to take into account just transition in a comprehensive way. The Roundtable also highlighted the global impact chains of wood production, security of supply in food production and the transition to sustainability through more plant-based production and consumption.

27.1.2021 | The ForestValue network has announced a call for a joint European research project that aims to support the sustainable and multifunctional use and management of forests and promote building with wood. The number of countries participating in the call is 10 and the total funding budget is about 11,5 million euro.

15.11.2021 | Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä will visit the United States on 15–16 November. This is his first visit since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. During his visit, Minister Lintilä will discuss energy, bioeconomy and digitalisation with high-level representatives of the US administration and of the states. He will also meet Finnish companies operating in the United States, and speak at a bioeconomy conference.

21.1.2022 | The EU’s environment and energy ministers will convene in informal meetings in Amiens, France on 20–22 January 2022. Emma Kari, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, and Jukka Ihanus, State Secretary to Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä, will represent Finland in the meetings hosted by France.

27.4.2023 | During the current government term, Finland has made significant contributions to climate change resilient and sustainable solutions in the land use sector by funding more than 100 projects that produce research knowledge to serve as the basis for decision-making. Topics where groundbreaking research is done include soil studies and carbon sequestration, which are highly topical in the EU contexts as well.

14.9.2022 | Jay Inslee, Governor of the State of Washington in the United States, is visiting Finland with his delegation from 13 to 16 September 2022. Governor Inslee is making a return visit following the visit of Minister of Transport and Communications Timo Harakka to Washington state in November 2021.

8.12.2022 | The atmosphere in Tanzania has become more open with the current president. There is a lot of talk about problems with women’s rights, for example, and this makes it easier to promote these rights, according to Finland’s Ambassador to Tanzania Teresa Zitting.

24.10.2022 | Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine creates uncertainty for the international economy and has broad multiplier effects. Rising prices weaken consumers’ purchasing power, increase production costs and reduce willingness to invest. On the other hand, projects related to circular economy, digitalisation and clean energy solutions are progressing quickly in the regions.

14.9.2022 | Jay Inslee, Governor of the State of Washington in the United States, is visiting Finland with his delegation from 13 to 16 September 2022. Governor Inslee is making a return visit following the visit of Minister of Transport and Communications Timo Harakka to Washington state in November 2021.

12.4.2023 | On 12 April 2023, the Ministry of Transport and Communications published a report on the opportunities provided by the introduction of the standard European track gauge in Finland and on the related impacts. Preliminary estimates show that the costs of the considered alternative implementations are significant in relation to the benefits. 

4.3.2022 | The European Union responded to Belarus’ involvement in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by imposing new sanctions on it. The EU Member States approved further sanctions against Belarus on 2 March 2022. These sanctions complement the sanctions adopted on 24 June 2021.

11.11.2022 | All legislative initiatives of the extensive Fit-for-55 package published by the European Commission in summer 2021 have now proceeded to the trilogue negotiations. The negotiations on the LULUCF Regulation concerning land use, land use change and forestry that started on Thursday 10 November continued till the small hours. An outcome was reached, but the agreement is provisional until it has been formally adopted.

31.3.2021 | The working group on peat, which was appointed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, submitted its report to Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä on 31 March 2021. The report includes measures to improve the situation of peat industry operators as demand for energy peat declines sharply due to the emission allowance prices rising much faster than previously forecast.

27.6.2022 | The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment requests opinions on the proposed programme, regional transition plans and environmental report of the Just Transition Fund (JTF). The Fund mitigates the socio-economic and environmental effects that decarbonisation causes to regional economies and employment in the EU. In Finland, funding will be directed at the reform of the economic structure and measu...

31.5.2021 | Almost two thousand people took part in the process to create a Nordic perspective for the European Commission’s New European Bauhaus initiative. The participants considered that Nordic values such as sustainability, closeness to nature, equality and inclusion provide a good basis for housing and building. The final report on the outcomes of the Nordic co-design process has now been published and submitted to the European Commission.

31.5.2021 | Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä will participate in a virtual Team Finland visit to China in June 2021. The aim is to strengthen relations between Finnish and Chinese companies, particularly within the low-carbon and circular economy, the bioeconomy and maritime industry.

18.1.2022 | In 2020, the use of renewable energy in total energy consumption surpassed the use of fossil energy. The rapid increase in the price of emission allowances promotes investments in renewable energy and their use. The biogas sector will advance with the introduction of the distribution obligation and the guarantee of origin system. These were the conclusions of a thematic report on renewable energy published on 18 January 2022.