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Work gets underway at Pikkala for Net Zero heating solution

Net Zero solution uses sustainable biomass fuel from plant’s waste

Prysmian Group is working to set science-based carbon reduction targets for both our own organization (Scope 1&2 emissions between 2035 and 2040) and our supply chain (Scope 3 emissions by 2050).

“I get asked ‘how sustainable are you?’ more frequently than the more traditional question ‘how competitive are you?’” said Prysmian Finland CEO Borjan Sehovac. “This news on the biomass plant will be very important to our stakeholders.”

Borjan Sehovac

Prysmian Finland CEO

The new renewable biomass solution cuts the annual CO2 emissions at Pikkala from thermal energy by 100% and reduces energy costs by nearly 20% by €190,000 each year, by using recycled wood from cable transport drums after they become unsuitable for industrial use. Construction should break ground in May, and the new plant should be ready during the first quarter of next year.

Mr. Sehovac has also doubled the number of charging stations for electric cars, reflecting the company’s new fleet policy.

Starting from January 2021, all Prysmian Group’s new company cars in Italy will be exclusively plug-in hybrid models or full electric.  The “green” corporate car policy is one of the actions Prysmian Group is taking to meet its 2022 sustainability goals.

The biomass plant at Pikkala and more electric cars in company fleet are two of the concrete steps Prysmian Group is taking to reach its goal of becoming carbon neutral. Almost 50% of the Pikkala plant’s biomass needs will be supplied by Prysmian’s own wooden drums on-site, and the remainder will come from third-party carbon-neutral recycled wood sources.

The new heating system will replace natural gas and will be supplied by leading Baltic energy group Adven, reducing yearly CO2 emissions from thermal energy by 100% from current level from Spring 2022 onwards over a multi-year contract.

The plant at Pikkala manufactures medium- and low-voltage land and submarine cables for the energy transition. It is one of Prysmian Group’s four submarine cables plants in Europe, along with Arco Felice (Naples), Drammen (Norway) and Nordenham (Germany).

Achieving carbon-free heating at Pikkala will help Prysmian meet several goals on its Sustainability Scorecard for 2022: to cut CO2 emissions by 2-3%; to recycle as much as two thirds of its own waste; and to reuse 27% of its own drums. In the next three years starting from 2020, Prysmian will invest around €450 million to further improve the sustainability of its organization and supply chain, and to accelerate the development of advanced cable technologies as well as assets and services. Energy consumption reduction, circularity and waste recyclability are key in Prysmian’s efforts.

For Prysmian Group, reducing Climate Change is a long-term ambition, translated into a concrete action plan and totally rooted in our business model (both as an enabler of the energy transition and as a competitive advantage to better support our customers in efforts to reach their targets).

“We are very pleased that new heating solution is more sustainable, it costs less, and implements a circular economy solution that is carbon free,” said Sehovac. “It is a no brainer!”

Borjan Sehovac

Prysmian Finland CEO