NordenBladet — Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will present the priorities of Finland’s Chairmanship in connection with the Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit conference on 16 November. In Rovaniemi, the Minister will also meet representatives of the Sámi Parliament and speak at the University of Lapland.The first meeting of the Committee of Senior Officials during Finland’s Chairmanship of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council was held in Rovaniemi on 15 November. During its Chairmanship of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, Finland’s objectives include strengthening biodiversity in the Barents region by combating invasive alien species, supporting the electrification of transport, strengthening young people’s opportunities for participation, supporting free movement, and improving transport connections.
NordenBladet — The Government has extended the validity of the decree restricting the activities of food and beverage service businesses until 31 December 2021. Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses will be reintroduced in the regions of North Ostrobothnia, Pirkanmaa and Kanta-Häme and in the Hospital District of Länsi-Pohja.The degree will enter into force 15 November 2021. Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses will be introduced to the new regions on 17 November 2021.Last week, the Government decided that areas are no longer classified into different phases based on their epidemiological situation. Instead, a system of epidemiological characteristics for community transmission areas has been created that is better suited to the current situation. The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare will publish information on the areas that meet these epidemiological characteristics on its website starting on 15 November.Press release of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health: Ministry of Social Affairs and Health issues circular to regions on full application of action plan for hybrid strategyRestrictions on food and beverage service businesses in the regions of Southwest Finland, Satakunta, Päijät-Häme, Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia, Central Ostrobothnia, North Ostrobothnia, Pirkanmaa, Uusimaa, Kymenlaakso and Kanta-Häme and in the Hospital District of Länsi-Pohja, which are all community transmission areas, from 17 NovemberFood and beverage service businesses may serve alcoholic beverages between 7.00 and 00.00 and be open between 5.00 and 1.00.Food and beverage service businesses that primarily serve alcoholic beverages may have only half the normal number of customer seats in use in their indoor and outdoor premises. Other food and beverage service are restricted to 75 per cent of their normal number of customer seats indoors.All customers must have their own seats at a table or similar in indoor premises.Businesses who require all customers to present a COVID-19 passport are exempt from the restrictions.Restrictions on food and beverage service businesses elsewhere in Finland from 17 NovemberThere are no separate restrictions on the number of customers or on licensing and opening hours.The obligation to observe the general hygiene guidelines and to keep a safe distance applies in all regions.Exceptions to restrictions remain unchangedThe restrictions laid down in the decree do not apply to the activities of staff restaurants or to takeaway sales of food to customers. The restrictions on opening hours do not apply to food and beverage service businesses on vessels and aircraft that operate between Finland and other countries or abroad or to food and beverage service businesses that operate at distribution stations for liquid fuels.
NordenBladet — Finland is renowned for its water and its technical expertise in the water sector. A recent evaluation calls for Finland to decide what kind of operator it would like to become in water diplomacy. Studies show that children living in a conflict environment are 20 times more likely to die from complications arising from contaminated water than to become victims of the actual armed conflict. Photo: Liisa TakalaFinland’s international water sector strategy seeks a water-secure world by the year 2030. This means ensuring that water suitable for each particular purpose is always available everywhere and for everyone in the world. It’s an ambitious goal, but Finland has lessons to draw from.One of the three packages in the strategy focuses on issues of peace and water. This theme is highly important: even though water resources are rarely mentioned in peace agreements, water has been part of the background to at least half of all conflicts since the end of the 1990s.Solid expertise …Published at the end of October, the evaluation examines how Finland’s water diplomacy has successfully resolved and prevented water-related tensions – and what could be done better in the future. Commissioned by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the independent evaluation focused on Finland’s work at the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), cross-border co-operation with Russia, and Finland’s support for transboundary water issues on the Mekong and Nile rivers.The overall assessment is highly favourable: Finland earns praise for its long-term support for the participatory management and use of water resources, and for developing international co-operation in the water sector. The evaluation finds that one special strength of Finland is its highly motivated and competent network of operators. Finland’s agreement with Russia on transboundary watercourses has been rated the best in the world. The evaluation finds that Finland has continuously demonstrated its capacity to respond to water-related tensions, and to apply evidence-based diplomacy and technical assistance.… for others to note as wellFinland accordingly has the capacity, the will and the operators – so what is missing? According to evaluation team leader Rens de Man, international operators remain too unfamiliar with Finland’s expertise. Finland must accordingly draw up a clear plan of how it can become a leading player in water diplomacy. To support implementation of the strategy, an interdepartmental organisation is needed to bring together the best expertise of various operators.“Conflict prevention calls for thorough knowledge of the operating environment. This, in turn, requires research institutes, civic organisations, businesses and Finnish missions to have clear roles, incentives and opportunities to serve as providers and mediators of the information that is needed in water diplomacy. It is already too late to gather information when the conflict has already erupted,” de Mans observes.Communication, preparation and smooth co-operation of the water diplomacy network are of paramount importance for Finland to be recognised as a credible and approachable partner.Read moreThe evaluation report and a video recording of its official release
NordenBladet — Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen and French Secretary of State for European Affairs Clément Beaune will meet in Helsinki on Tuesday 16 November.In their meeting, the ministers will discuss topical EU matters including the economy, the EU’s Strategic Compass for security and defence cooperation, the rule of law and climate and energy policy. The French Presidency of the Council of the EU, which will start in January 2022, will also be on the agenda. Minister Tuppurainen and Minister Beaune will also visit the University of Helsinki, where they will discuss the future of the European Union with students.
NordenBladet — Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä will visit the United States on 15–16 November. This is his first visit since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. During his visit, Minister Lintilä will discuss energy, bioeconomy and digitalisation with high-level representatives of the US administration and of the states. He will also meet Finnish companies operating in the United States, and speak at a bioeconomy conference.Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä will speak at an international bioeconomy conference on sustainable wood biomass production in Finland. Wood biomass is used for a number of purposes, such as renewable chemicals, bio-based products and biofuels.“We need a global bio-based economy. Finnish companies have much to offer in terms of solving global challenges. The United States is an important partner for us, and I believe we can engage in deeper cooperation in fields such as biofuels,” Minister Lintilä says. During his visit, Minister Lintilä will also meet representatives of Finnish companies operating in the United States to hear what is happening in the local markets.Minister of Economic Affairs to meet high-level representatives of the statesThe Minister will visit the State of Virginia and discuss, among other things, possibilities for cooperation in 6G research with Governor Ralph Northam. The Minister will also visit the Virginia Tech campus, the home of the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative research, development and innovation network.“This is an extremely fast-advancing technology, and to remain at the cutting edge, small countries like Finland need to build networks with the leading international research institutes,” Minister Lintilä says. Minister Lintilä will meet Member of Congress Paul Tonko to discuss clean energy objectives and actions taken in the United States. He will also meet high-level representatives of the States of Maine and Michigan. Finland has bioeconomy working groups in both states, coordinated by Business Finland and the Embassy of Finland in Washington DC. The objective of this cooperation is to open up new commercial opportunities for Finnish businesses. The United States is one of Finland’s most important trading partners, and cooperation with individual states plays an important role in exports promotion.
NordenBladet — On 15 to 16 November 2021, Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen will attend the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting and the Steering Board meeting of the European Defence Agency (EDA) in Brussels. On the first day of the meeting, foreign and defence ministers will discuss the first draft of the Strategic Compass, the evaluation and steering document for the EU’s security and defence cooperation, at their joint session. On the second day of the meeting, defence ministers are to discuss the effectiveness and lessons learned from the EU’s training operations. The ministers will receive an overview of the Coordinated Maritime Presences (CMP), military mobility and progress made in implementing the EU’s permanent structured cooperation. In addition, the defence ministers will discuss cooperation between the EU and NATO with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. On the EDA Board, ministers will discuss the EDA’s support for defence sector innovation in the Member States, including transformational technologies. The ministers will adopt, among other things, the basic principles for cooperation with third countries and a negotiating mandate to establish an administrative arrangement between the EDA and the United States.
NordenBladet — Completed late on Saturday, the Glasgow Climate Change Conference has successfully reinforced commitment to the objectives of the Paris Agreement.Countries were urged to update their emission reduction targets and long-term low-carbon development plans by as soon as next year. Progress towards the 1.5 degree target set in the Paris Agreement will be reviewed on an annual basis in future.“The decision keeps the 1.5 degree target within our reach. The clock is ticking, and the next few years will be crucial. This is why we need to keep up continual pressure to improve climate measures specifically in the 2020s, and this latest decision to require annual updating will do that”, explains Krista Mikkonen, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change.After more than five years of work, the Conference completed the rules of the Paris Agreement, which Minister Mikkonen views as evidence that the countries of the world can work together to find solutions for combating the climate crisis.Room for improvement remains in rules governing market mechanismsThe rules of the Paris Agreement were now completed with rules on international market mechanisms. These rules seek to prevent counting of the same emission reductions towards the national targets of more than one country, and to ensure that emission reduction projects are additional to other measures. The compromise achieved nevertheless still allows limited use of old emission reduction units earned under the Kyoto Protocol until in 2030. The European Union and Finland advocated an alternative that would have entirely prohibited the use of units from the previous period towards Paris Agreement commitments.“While the rules of the mechanism are far from perfect, they do enable us to avoid double counting. The outcome enables the development of market-based emission reduction solutions between countries, with implementation no longer solely dependent on the voluntary carbon market. Many details still need to be worked out later”, observes Ministerial Adviser Tuomo Kalliokoski.Unprecedented funding pledges for developing countries to adapt to climate changeAdapting to climate change was a more prominent agenda item in Glasgow than at previous climate change conferences. Countries announced pledges to the Adaptation Fund amounting to an unprecedented USD 356 million, in support of adaptation to climate change. Developed countries made a commitment to double their financial contributions to developing countries for climate change adaptation from 2019 levels by the year 2025, and to seek an increase in the share of financing for climate change adaptation to half of all public climate financing. The countries also agreed that five per cent of sales revenues generated through the international market mechanism would be transferred to the Adaptation Fund.“It is unfortunate that the pre-Paris firewall remains in funding, with obligations solely for developed countries”, says Outi Honkatukia, a lead negotiator for climate finance for the EU.The countries agreed on the next steps for determining the climate change finance target for public and private funding after 2025. The Santiago Network of Experts on Climate Change Damage and Loss will be strengthened. Developed countries were also urged to finance its work. This will be discussed in greater detail at future conferences.A two-year Glasgow–Sharm el-Sheikh work programme seeks to give substance to the global adaptation goal. The Paris Agreement imposes a clear numerical target only for tackling climate change.“Measuring emission reductions is easy, but we have no indicators for successfully adapting to climate change. We are now working together to correct this failing”, explains Minister Mikkonen, who negotiated on adaptation issues on behalf of the European Union.Reporting rules ensure that countries communicate their actions and emissions transparently and consistentlyThe parties also agreed on the tables whereby countries will report their emission trends, their actions and their financing. The rules also strengthen and clarify reporting of emissions and actions in developing countries. Support was promised for developing countries in meeting their reporting obligations.Future national emission reduction commitments should be issued in a commensurable way. The target year for the nationally determined contributions to be communicated in 2025 should be the same for everyone: 2035. This will also facilitate monitoring and assessment in achieving the common objective, and five-yearly reviews under the Paris Agreement.“We shall have a clearer idea of the pace of progress towards our goal when all countries report their emissions in a uniform and transparent manner”, says Marjo Nummelin, Finland’s Chief Negotiator for Climate Change.First UN reference to decarbonisation, role of nature conservation and ecosystem restoration highlightedThe countries pledged to accelerate decarbonisation and to end inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. The decision also emphasises the role of nature conservation and ecosystem restoration in achieving the objectives of the Paris Agreement.“This is the first time that decarbonisation has been mentioned in a UN text. It is an important signal, even if we had hoped for a stronger pledge. I also consider it important that the decision highlights nature conservation and restoration. The climate and environmental crises cannot be solved as separate issues – this should also be acknowledged ahead of the major biodiversity conference in Kunming”, Minister Mikkonen observes.Besides its final conclusions, the Glasgow conference published a series of initiatives to reduce emissions. The subjects of the initiatives and declarations joined by Finland include halting deforestation, and reducing emissions from transport and emissions of methane gas. These initiatives support international efforts to reduce emissions and encourage countries to ramp up their own national commitments.The next Climate Change Conference will be held one year from now in Egypt.
NordenBladet – NordenBladet launched today, on November 15, a new app that allows visitors of our websites keep track of daily electricity prices at any chosen time
Electricity tariffs will be displayed on NordenBladet’s front page and sitewide on the right side of the page in the form of a table. You can check the exact price of electricity during one full hour until the next. The Estonian site (NordenBladet.ee) publishes Estonian electricity prices, the Finnish language site (NordenBladet.fi) publishes electricity prices of Finland.
PRICE GUIDE*:
? Red – the day’s highest prices
? Yellow – the day’s typical price
? Green – the day’s most profitable price
(prices in the table are given before/without value-added tax)
Estonia and Finland belong to the Nord Pool Spot electricity market trade region. Besides Estonia and Finland, the NordPool also involves Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Latvia and Lithuania. In the Nord Pool Spot, electricity prices will be determined separately for every hour of the day and separately for every region. Each country has the minimum of one price zone, countries with larger territories may have several zones.
Electricity’s market value will be calculated by Nord Pool electricity stocks individually for every hour. For each hour, all electricity production offers beginning with the most inexpensive will be ranked, and all electricity demand offers will be ranked beginning with the most expensive. In the intersection of these two lines the price of electricity will be shaped.
__________________________________ ATTENTION! * Electrical grid level depends on the electrical network service provider and the location of every individual consumer’s electrical substation. The price guide has been designed based on Nord Pool data in a supporting manner, with the aim of simplifying the price market overview – NordenBladet will not accept responsibility regarding your electricity consumption!
NordenBladet — Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen and German Minister of State for Europe Michael Roth met today in Helsinki. During their meeting, the ministers discussed topical EU matters, such as the rule of law and climate issues, as well as migration and the situation at the external border. Their discussion also touched on the ongoing Conference on the Future of Europe.During the visit, Minister Tuppurainen and Minister Roth visited the Helsinki German School, where they discussed the future of Europe with students. The ministers also visited the Helsinki Central Library Oodi.
Studies show that children living in a conflict environment are 20 times more likely to die from complications arising from contaminated water than to become victims of the actual armed conflict. Photo: Liisa Takala