12 FINNISH ENERGY PoLICY IN TRANSITIoN
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However, there are two distinct cultures of home heating in Finland.
Finnish apartment buildings are mainly served by district heating. These
buildings (both owner-occupied and rented) are collectively managed and
billed for district heating as one unit. Residents do not pay individually
for their heating—rather, billing for space heating is by square meters
(Matschoss et al. 2013). Apartments are equipped with thermostats, making the heating to some extent adjustable, but residents rarely adjust their
heating systems (Karjalainen 2009). Until now, district heat has been relatively cheap in large cities due to the widespread use of CHP. Because of
this, city dwellers in particular are not too concerned about energy costs.
Finnish detached houses, making up 55% of the residential building
area (Statistics Finland 2019), are not usually served by district heating.
Direct electric heating is still the most common heating source, often
coupled with fireplaces. However, heat pumps have rapidly gained
ground. About 900,000 heat pumps have been sold in Finland, providing about 15% of residential heat consumption (SULPU 2019), reflecting the Finns’ propensity to rapidly adopt technological novelties. Energy
costs are a much larger concern in detached houses than in apartments,
especially for residents with electric or oil heating. Indeed, while energy
poverty is relatively rare in Finland, rural elderly people with outdated
heating systems are vulnerable, since it is difficult to afford major heating
system investments in declining rural areas (Runsten et al. 2015).
Saunas are a distinct Finnish cultural peculiarity. Nevertheless, compared
to space heating and domestic hot water, saunas are not a major consumer
of energy (Statistics Finland 2018a), even though there are 2 million of
them. However, since most modern saunas in cities are powered with
electricity, they contribute to peak electricity (Järventausta et al. 2015).
Individual saunas started to become a standard feature also in apartments, though this trend is declining in cities due to space constraints. In
Helsinki, public saunas have made a comeback, reflecting a wider trend of
new urbanism, which emphasizes shared services and amenities, including
traditional bricks-and-mortar based, as well as new digital solutions.
energy poLiCy in finLanD
Finnish energy policy is in transition. For decades, policy focused on
the needs of industry, which consumes more than 40% of all the energy
used in the country (Statistics Finland 2018b). The share of renewable
energy has grown steadily since the late 1970s, but much of it still comes
129
However, there are two distinct cultures of home heating in Finland.
Finnish apartment buildings are mainly served by district heating. These
buildings (both owner-occupied and rented) are collectively managed and
billed for district heating as one unit. Residents do not pay individually
for their heating—rather, billing for space heating is by square meters
(Matschoss et al. 2013). Apartments are equipped with thermostats, making the heating to some extent adjustable, but residents rarely adjust their
heating systems (Karjalainen 2009). Until now, district heat has been relatively cheap in large cities due to the widespread use of CHP. Because of
this, city dwellers in particular are not too concerned about energy costs.
Finnish detached houses, making up 55% of the residential building
area (Statistics Finland 2019), are not usually served by district heating.
Direct electric heating is still the most common heating source, often
coupled with fireplaces. However, heat pumps have rapidly gained
ground. About 900,000 heat pumps have been sold in Finland, providing about 15% of residential heat consumption (SULPU 2019), reflecting the Finns’ propensity to rapidly adopt technological novelties. Energy
costs are a much larger concern in detached houses than in apartments,
especially for residents with electric or oil heating. Indeed, while energy
poverty is relatively rare in Finland, rural elderly people with outdated
heating systems are vulnerable, since it is difficult to afford major heating
system investments in declining rural areas (Runsten et al. 2015).
Saunas are a distinct Finnish cultural peculiarity. Nevertheless, compared
to space heating and domestic hot water, saunas are not a major consumer
of energy (Statistics Finland 2018a), even though there are 2 million of
them. However, since most modern saunas in cities are powered with
electricity, they contribute to peak electricity (Järventausta et al. 2015).
Individual saunas started to become a standard feature also in apartments, though this trend is declining in cities due to space constraints. In
Helsinki, public saunas have made a comeback, reflecting a wider trend of
new urbanism, which emphasizes shared services and amenities, including
traditional bricks-and-mortar based, as well as new digital solutions.
energy poLiCy in finLanD
Finnish energy policy is in transition. For decades, policy focused on
the needs of industry, which consumes more than 40% of all the energy
used in the country (Statistics Finland 2018b). The share of renewable
energy has grown steadily since the late 1970s, but much of it still comes