Our sustainability claims explained

When we use the term “low carbon”, we refer to sold or produced energy that has a significantly lower carbon footprint over its entire life cycle compared to fossil fuels like coal, oil, or natural gas. For electricity generation, our low-carbon sources include hydropower, nuclear, onshore wind, and solar. For heating and cooling, our low-carbon sources include electricity-based heating (produced e.g. with heat pumps and electric boilers) using renewable or nuclear electricity (bundled with Guarantees of Origin), heat from the ambient air, as well as waste heat from processes using low-carbon renewable or nuclear electricity. This view is supported by life‑cycle emissions of these energy generation sources.

More about the life-cycle emissions by energy source: A useful way to compare energy sources is by their life-cycle carbon intensity, typically measured in grams of CO₂-equivalent per kilowatt-hour (g CO₂e/kWh) of energy produced. This metric accounts for all emissions “from cradle to grave”, including everything from raw material extraction and plant construction to operation and decommissioning.

The graph below illustrates the typical life-cycle emissions for major electricity generation sources, based on values from United Nations Economic Commission for Europe 2022 study¹. If Fortum has carried out its own life cycle assessment, also the Fortum-specific information is provided. Low-carbon energy sources cluster in 100 grams or lower, whereas fossil fuels emit several hundreds of gCO₂e/kWh.

• Hydropower: Hydropower provides large-scale, stable renewable electricity and helps balance intermittent sources like wind and solar. Its life-cycle emissions are very low, coming mainly from materials of dams and turbines, transportation and construction. In the UNECE 2022 study, hydropower lifecycle emissions were 10.7 gCO₂e/kWh for a 360 MW hydropower plant. While hydropower produces no direct fossil emissions during operation, some greenhouse gases may result from water level fluctuations and flow changes, though these impacts are hard to separate from other human activities and natural processes.
• Nuclear power: Nuclear power provides large-scale baseload electricity generation with a very low carbon footprint. The largest share of its life-cycle emissions comes from the nuclear fuel supply chain, but during operation, a nuclear power plant emits very low amounts of CO2. Fortum has carried out a life cycle assessment (LCA) for its fully owned Loviisa nuclear power plant in 2025, showing that the carbon footprint of electricity delivered to customer from Loviisa nuclear powerplant is 6.08g CO2e/kWh. Compared to many other similar studies, the LCA includes actual impact from the Posiva Oy best in class repository for spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto, Finland.
• Onshore wind power: Wind power is a renewable source of energy that produces no CO₂ emissions during production – wind turbines simply convert airflow into electricity. The largest environmental impact of onshore wind power comes from upstream value chain, including materials used for tower, blades and foundation, and transportation. A LCA has been carried out for Fortum’s wind site in Pjelax, with a footprint of 10.3 gCO₂e/kWh.
• Solar power: Solar power is a renewable energy source. In the UNECE 2022 study, solar power lifecycle emissions were 36.7 gCO₂e/kWh for silicon-based, ground-mounted panels. The biggest impact comes from silicon production, cell manufacturing, electrical equipment and construction. The impact per generated kWh also depends on the location of the panels.

_{[1] United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, 2022: Carbon Neutrality in the UNECE Region: Integrated Life-cycle Assessment of Electricity Sources Integrated Life-cycle Assessment of Electricity Sources} - External link_{.
UNECE 1: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, 2022: Carbon Neutrality in the UNECE Region: Integrated Life-cycle Assessment of Electricity Sources Integrated Life-cycle Assessment of Electricity Sources} - External link_{.
Loviisa 2: Loviisa NPP Lifecycle assessment summary. Value calculated for electricity delivered for customers incl. T&D losses. Results from different LCA studies are not fully comparable due to differences in methodology, system boundaries and assumptions.
Pjelax 3: LCA Report - EPD of a Nordex wind farm with Delta4000 N163-6.X turbines LCA Report - EPD of a Nordex wind farm with Delta4000 N163-6.X turbines} - External link_{. Results from different LCA studies are not fully comparable due to differences in methodology, system boundaries and assumptions.}

When we use the term “fossil-free” in relation to energy production, or “produced from fossil‑free sources”, we refer to the primary energy source used in the production phase, meaning that no fossil fuels are used as the main energy source. This does not imply that fossil fuels are not used in the broader value chain, nor that the value chain is fully fossil‑free or emission‑free over its full life cycle. Nevertheless, fossil-free energy sources generally result in clearly lower life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil-based alternatives.

For electricity generation, our fossil-free sources include renewable sources such as hydropower, wind, solar, bio-based fuels (biomass, biowaste and biofuels), as well as nuclear power. For heating and cooling, our fossil-free energy sources include renewable or nuclear electricity (bundled with Guarantees of Origin), heat from ambient air, waste heat from processes powered by low-carbon renewable or nuclear electricity, and bio-based energy sources.

When using this claim, we refer to fossil-free renewable and nuclear electricity sources. In 2025, Fortum’s electricity generation mix looked as follows, with renewables and nuclear power accounting for 99% of total generation:

^{*Other = Biofuels}

Fortum also produces district heating and cooling. The 99% figure applies only to electricity generation and excludes heating and cooling operations. For heat and steam production, 64% of production in 2025 (83% in Finland and 33% in Poland) was from fossil-free sources and waste heat.

This claim means that the amount of CO₂ emitted per unit of electricity generated by Fortum is among the lowest in Europe. In 2024, Fortum’s specific CO₂ emissions (Scope 1) from power generation were 11 gCO₂/kWh. Comparing to other energy utilities in Europe in 2024, Fortum ranks as having the fourth lowest emissions out of altogether 27 companies studied. 

All figures include specific carbon dioxide from power generation in Europe in 2024. For some companies, the PwC figures might also include heat production. Source: PwC, November 2025, Climate Change and Electricity. PwC, November 2025, Climate Change and Electricity. - External link
 

Fortum has set a science-based near- and long-term climate targets to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions across our value chain by 2040. This target has been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), which is an independent corporate climate action organization that develops standards, tools and guidance to help companies set greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets in line with climate science. Hence, SBTi’s validation ensures that our net zero targets align with the latest climate science and is in line with limiting global warming to 1.5°C. 

The SBTi-validated net zero targets are complemented by our transition plan for climate change mitigation, which defines actions and resources to reach our net-zero targets. Annual progress and actions are also disclosed in our Sustainability Statement, published annually as part of the Fortum Financials report.

Decarbonisation of energy intensive industries is a fundamental next step in the green transition. With our low-carbon power generation, such as nuclear, hydro and wind power, and heat production based on low-carbon electricity, such as electric boilers and heat from industrial processes and ambient air, we enable our customers to choose low-carbon energy. This helps them lower emissions, reduce their reliance on fossil fuels, and work towards the climate targets they may have set, for example:

• Customers can choose different products from Fortum and when origin is chosen it is backed with Guarantees or Origin. See more on GoOs below. Baseload nuclear power helps Swedish industry to reduce carbon emissions at a competitive price | Fortum
• We invest in and partner with industrial players to drive new decarbonisation projects (e.g. Arctial).
• We are building an extensive pipeline for renewable energy to secure the future low-carbon energy needs for our customers and their decarbonisation projects.
• We provide district heating and cooling based on low-carbon electricity, as well as electricity-based heating, cooling and steam production, and heat recovery and recycling, to industrial and district heating companies. The solutions typically replace fossil fuels as an energy source. https://www.fortum.com/fi/en/heating-and-cooling https://www.fortum.com/fi/en/heating-and-cooling - External link

Guarantees of Origin (GoOs) are proof that confirm that a certain amount of electricity, gas (hydrogen) or heating & cooling was generated from a specific source, such as nuclear or renewable energy sources. GoOs are a financial support scheme for electricity and heating & cooling procedures. This is distinct from the physical delivery of electricity, which is always a mix of all energy fed into the grid or network. Because we cannot control or guarantee the exact type of electricity or heating & cooling a customer receives, GoOs are the only reliable mechanism for tracking and verifying the origin of the energy.

Whenever we make an environmental claim about the electricity or heating & cooling (in Finland) sold to our customers, such as describing the energy as "low-carbon" or "fossil-free", these claims are always based on GoOs. With claims backed up by GoOs, the customer has exclusive right for the renewable or nuclear origin. GoOs certify that an equivalent amount of consumed electricity was generated from those sources.

GoOs allow corporate enterprise customers to report their consumed electricity or heating & cooling as 100% renewable or nuclear in their Scope 2 emissions reporting under the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Thus, it is appropriate to state in marketing communications to corporate and enterprise customers that buying GoOs helps customers lower the emissions they report.