Finland and China towards Closer Innovation Cooperation

Finland is proud to host the China-Finland Committee for Innovative Business Cooperation Dec. 12-13 2019 in Helsinki. The Committee was set up on the initiative of President Xi Jinping and President Sauli Niinistö in 2017. The event brought to Helsinki high-profile representatives from major Chinese corporations, ministries and research institutes. Finland was represented by prominent business executives from leading corporations, SME growth companies as well as representatives from several institutions.

Mr. Risto Siilasmaa (Chair, Nokia Corporation) is acting as Finland’s chairman of the Committee:

“The leading principles of the Innovation Committee are: business oriented, experimental and entrepreneurial – to have new ways to see and do things. The purpose of the Committee is not to make only speeches but to get things done. Four Working Groups of the Committee – Energy, Maritime Logistics, Forestry and Clean Air – are excellent examples of business sectors, where we can build mutually beneficial cooperation.”

As a result of the Committee meeting, following co-operation was initiated:

Energy

The Innovation Committee was set up as the initiative of Presidents Xi and Niinistö in the context of their Helsinki meeting in spring 2017. Energy solutions play a key role in promoting sustainable development, which is why energy was also chosen as the theme of the first working group set up within the Innovation Committee.

Cooperation within the working group will focus, among others, on flexible energy solutions, district heating and cooling, and clean energy such as waste-to-energy solutions and bioenergy. This year’s meeting of the energy working group also emphasized innovation cooperation, with the aim of jointly producing smart energy solutions. Business meetings have already led to several joint innovation projects and concrete deals.

Chair of the working group:
Jaakko Eskola, President & CEO, Wärtsilä Corporation
Haibo ZHEN, Director General of State Grid Corporation of China European

Maritime logistics

Land and sea transport are projected to nearly double globally by 2030. At the same time, China is investing heavily in logistics routes. The market transformation, together with China’s gigantic logistics projects, will bring significant new business opportunities for Finnish companies. The cooperation between Finnish and Chinese companies in the Innovation Committee’s working group focuses on e.g. Northeast Passage for maritime transport, icebreakers and arctic research vessels, smart port infrastructure, autonomous shipping and digitalization, as well as sustainable technology solutions. Regarding future cooperation, companies are planning to expand the scope of their activities to other forms of maritime value chain related logistics such as road, rail and ports logistics.

Chair of the working group:
Mikael Laine, Member of the Leadership Team, SVP Strategy, Cargotec Corporation   
Jun SUN, President, COSCO Shipping (Europe) GmbH

Forest industry

Forestry Working Group focused on circular bio economy and the role of business in building a sustainable future.

The market for forest industry products is forecast to grow by over 2% yearly up to 2030, from 575 billion euros in 2017 to 770 billion euros in 2030. Growth is forecast e.g. in wooden construction materials, tissue paper, fiber packaging, pulp, fuels and chemicals.

Responding to the growing demand, Chinese and Finnish forest cluster companies enable sustainable consumer choices. The development and commercial production of new wood-based products and bio-based materials, such as textiles and plastic film replacements, will further reinforce this trend.

Chair of the working group:
Jussi Pesonen, President & CEO, UPM Corporation
Wang Yuhang, Vice President of China CAMC Engineering Co., Ltd.

Clean air

Clean Air Working Group concentrates on improving the outdoor and indoor air quality. The topic is vital as merely 10% of the population of the world live currently in clean air conditions.

The objective of the working group is to implement advanced technical solutions that can drastically lower the emission levels in production industry, reach great savings in the different production processes as well as improve air quality monitoring and indoor air quality. 

With regard to clean outdoor air, the target of the working group is to utilize industrial scale off-gas treatment technology which fulfills current and future emission legislation. In addition, companies focus on bringing innovative indoor air solutions that will create healthier and safer indoor air quality e.g. in hospitals.  

Chair of the working group:
Markku Teräsvasara, President & CEO, Outotec Corporation 
Mintal Group

The event was hosted by the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK) together with Business Finland and China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products CCCME. The Committee’s work is supported by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China MOFCOM and Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland.

More info on the China-Finland Committee for Innovative Business Cooperation

Additional Information from the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK:
Mr. Petri Vuorio, Director, Trade Policy, tel. +358 50 323 2979 (petri.vuorio@ek.fi)