Helsinki to install world’s largest heat pump in push for carbon neutrality

The Finnish capital is leading the energy transition: by 2026, 30,000 homes will be heated by the largest heat pump in the world, drastically reducing CO2 emissions

Helsinki is getting ready to break records with what will be the world’s largest heat pump, while changing how it heats up. It is an essential part of decarbonizing the Finnish capital’s district heating network: a centralized system which supplies homes and businesses by way of a underground pipe network.

Designed to operate efficiently even in extreme temperatures of -4°F (-20°C), the new heat pump will run on electricity sourced from renewable energy. This aligns with Helsinki’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. The project, commissioned by Finnish energy company Helen Oy, aims to have the facility up and running by the end of 2026.

As Juhani Aaltonen, Vice President of Green Investments at Helen Oy, explains:

“The decarbonization of our heating system is a significant step toward carbon neutrality. When this heat pump becomes operational, it will dramatically reduce the CO2 emissions from heating and provide greater price stability for customers through flexible production.”

Environmental impact and innovative technologies

The Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment has granted a subsidy to support the project. German manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions supplied the heat pump, which will operate in conjunction with two 50 MW electric boilers. Together, they will supply heat to around 30,000 households in the Finnish capital, saving about 26,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually.

What makes the project special is the use of CO2 as a refrigerant. Compared to other traditional gases that are harmful to the environment and have quite strict regulations within the EU, carbon dioxide is a more sustainable and safer alternative, even in case of leakage.

Uwe Lauber, CEO of MAN Energy Solutions, underlines:

“Projects in cities like this, integrating climate-neutral technologies, are what will accelerate the energy transition globally.”

At the moment, about 50% of the energy consumed in the European Union is for heating and cooling buildings; more than 70% of that energy is obtained from fossil fuels, with the greatest share from natural gas. Finland is leading the pack in sustainable heating solutions, with nearly half of the energy that went into heating Finnish buildings in 2021 being sourced from renewable sources, even though biomass still played a big role.

This new facility shows that Helsinki is avoiding additional strain on the forestry sector—a fact that was underlined by the competition held in 2021 to exclude biomass from the options for decarbonizing the city’s heating system.

Source: MAN Energy Solutions