Alumiinitehdas uhkaa Suomen ilmastotavoitteita

A planned aluminium plant in Kokkola would emit 1.12 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, threatening Finland’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2035, according to an environmental impact assessment.

The facility, if built, would rank among the country’s largest single sources of greenhouse gases. Finland’s total emissions from major industrial and energy installations under the emissions trading system were 11.9 million tonnes last year.

Jyri Seppälä, chair of Finland’s Climate Panel, said the 2035 target was already tight even without the plant. The additional 1 million tonnes from the aluminium facility would be difficult to offset with reductions elsewhere, as current projections for 2035 still leave 15 million tonnes of residual emissions even with carbon capture.

Despite the impact, climate experts defend the project. Outi Honkatukia, a senior advisor at the Ministry of the Environment, called it a green transition investment, noting Finland’s near-zero-emission electricity would make the plant’s per-tonne emissions far lower than global averages. Arctial estimates its emissions at 4 tonnes of CO₂ per tonne of aluminium, compared to 10.1 tonnes in Europe and higher elsewhere.

Honkatukia, a former EU lead negotiator at UN climate talks, said such investments align with government goals to position Finland as a clean energy leader. She also expects carbon capture technology to improve by the 2040s.

The plant would consume 9 terawatt-hours of electricity annually—about a tenth of Finland’s total usage—making it the country’s largest single power user. No new aluminium plant has been built in Europe in 30 years.