| Finnish Hydrogen Valley Association newsletter 4/24 |
| Arto Nikkanen The annual meeting of the Finnish Hydrogen Valley Association was held on 26 March in Helsinki. The Annual General Meeting approved the financial statements for 2023 and granted discharge to the members of the Board of Directors and the CEO. The meeting also discussed the action plan and budget for the year ahead. The Annual General Meeting elected the Board of Directors, which consists of 11 knowledgeable representatives of the membership. The Board of Directors met on 29 April and elected Arto Nikkanen (Lappeenrannan Energia Oy) as its Chairman. Tomi Haring (Business Joensuu Oy), Kari Laine (Kouvola Innovation Oy) and Jussi Heinimö (City of Mikkeli) were elected as Vice-Chairs. The Hydrogen Valley Business Group will continue and further develop its activities. As a new group, it was decided to establish a network of municipal actors to assist member municipalities with the challenges related to the hydrogen economy and to offer new ways of solutions. Link to the annual meeting press release: https://suomenvetylaakso.fi/vuosikokous-2024/. The new board members and deputy members will be updated on our website soon. |
| Answer the questionnaire to improve the communication of the Hydrogen Valley of Finland Dear members! We want to develop the communication of the Hydrogen Valley to be more effective. We want to get your views on how this can be done, so please answer our questionnaire! It takes about 2 minutes to complete the questionnaire. The survey closes on 13.5.2024 at 23.59. We will use your answers in our communication strategy. All responses will be treated anonymously. The survey has been prepared by the communications agency Kumppania Oy. Thank you in advance for your help! |
| Gasgrid speeds up hydrogen infrastructure construction Gasgrid Finland has published preliminary alternative route plans for the Finnish hydrogen network. The aim is to develop a hydrogen infrastructure that meets the needs of operators and an open hydrogen market by the early 2030s. Although most of the projects are currently located on the west coast, the aim is to involve a wider range of hydrogen operators in the future in the implementation of a backbone network covering the whole of Finland. Potential areas for future hydrogen transmission network development include Eastern, Central and Northern Finland, where new wind or solar power generation may emerge. Gasgrid will be able to start mapping concrete route options together with the counties and municipalities during spring 2024. Feedback on the route options will also be collected from companies and project developers involved in the development of the hydrogen economy to support the further planning of the routes. The first phase of route discussions will be held with the provinces and municipalities through which the hydrogen transmission trunk line would pass according to the first draft alternative route plans. It is now a priority to mobilise companies to participate in the hydrogen pipeline project planning by responding to Gasgrid's market survey. The market survey is effectively a quick survey to identify project developers and companies' project plans. If you know of any plans for hydrogen production or demand, please respond as soon as possible: link to the hydrogen market survey for operators |
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| Project activities boost Hydrogen Valley The Hydrogen, Power to the South East project ended at the end of 2023 and achieved a lot of results. The most important steps were to find the conditions for a green transition business in South-East Finland and to strengthen cooperation between different actors in the launch of the Hydrogen Valley in Eastern Finland. Based on the material produced in this project, investors can better build their own development projects. The project provided significant assistance to the Finnish Hydrogen Valley Association in its early stages. The research and other material produced by the project is available for those interested, it is worth exploring; link https://www.greenreality.fi/hankkeet/vetya-virtaa-kaakkoon. At the end of last year, Hydrogen Valley launched a new project aimed at expanding Hydrogen Valley's area of operation in eastern Finland to include South Savo, North Savo and Kainuu. This expansion has been positively received in the regions. During the winter and spring, VET has organised meetings with regional decision-makers in Mikkeli, Savonlinna, Pieksämäki, Varkaus, Kuopio, Iisalmi and Kajaani. At the same time, LUT University is conducting more detailed studies of hydrogen lakes in South and North Savo. More on these results later. The following project-funded activities are planned for the development of hydrogen valley activities in eastern Finland in cooperation with regional actors. There is power in cooperation. |
| EU funding opportunities for clean energy and sustainable urban development projects Webinar 7.5. at 9-11:30 The EU Financial Advisory Service will organise a virtual information session for businesses on 7 May at 9-11:30 on various EU funding opportunities for clean energy and urban development projects. The webinar will cover a wide range of funding opportunities, from regionally competitive funding to European consortia projects, from R&D projects to investment projects, and from grant funding to market-based funding. Programme and registration |
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| NewSETS - Final seminar The three-year NewSETS project, which has been studying the role of energy storage in the energy transition, will come to an end in the summer. You are warmly welcome to the final seminar of the project in Lappeenranta on Tuesday 21.5.There will be a varied programme from presentations of research results to panel discussions and workshops. Register for the event |
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| Other news News from the member network P2X Solutions, a Finnish green hydrogen pioneer, has signed a financing agreement with Alpiq, a leading Swiss energy services provider and electricity producer. With Alpiq's investment, the company will become P2X Solutions' principal shareholder. European energy company Alpiq becomes P2X Solutions' principal shareholder From the Greening Package to the Green Transition Perhaps the most positive content of this spring's Greening Package is the new Growth Package. The government's decision to build a new tax credit scheme to boost large industrial investments in the green transition. The government also commits to ensure the investment capacity of Fingrid and Gasgrid, if necessary by strengthening the companies' capital structure to meet the needs of energy-intensive industrial investments, ensuring sufficient capacity in the transmission grid and ensuring that investments are made throughout Finland. In addition, the Eastern and Northern Finland programmes, which will be completed by the end of 2024, will contribute to supporting the growth potential of the regions. More information on the growth package |
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| The office wishes everyone a Happy Wappu! If you know someone who would like to be included in the distribution, please email office@vetylaakso.fi. Now you can also subscribe to the newsletter with the free subscription link: http://eepurl.com/iJCuto We also want to offer you the opportunity to take advantage of our channels! If you have something topical that could benefit from the Hydrogen Valley channels, please send us an email to office@vetylaakso.fi. Or call Jami: 0400 551 435 or Ant: 040 1478 777. |
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