Keva, a Finnish public sector pension insurance company, has signed a collaboration agreement with Suomen Puukerrostalot Oy to build 1,000 multi-story wooden buildings in Finland over the next three to five years.

Until now, the focus of Keva’s real estate investments` environmental issues has been on improving energy efficiency as it reduces the carbon footprint of properties, saves energy and makes the living environment more pleasant for everyone.

In addition to energy efficiency in its properties, Keva will also focus on reducing the carbon footprint throughout the life cycle of the buildings.

Commenting, Keva head of real estate Petri Suutarinen, said: “The letter of intent that we signed gives Keva the opportunity to add investments with a very low carbon footprint to its portfolio. Our goal is for around 10 per cent of our housing investments to go to buildings with a wooden framework and, depending on the site, to also run 100 per cent on renewable energy.”

By building low-carbon homes, Keva aims to reduce the financial risks associated with taxes on the life-cycle carbon footprint of its buildings and the use of fossil fuels, which will materialise by the 2030s at the latest.

“This is a specific measure to combat climate change and a logical step for a pension insurance company, which is a responsible, long-term investor,” Suutarinen said.

Keva owns approximately 3,600 rental homes in Finland. On 31 December 2018, the value of Keva’s direct real estate investments was approximately €2.5bn, of which housing accounted for 26 per cent.

The agreement is helping the largest investment in the construction of wooden buildings in Finland to go ahead.

According to the collaboration agreement, Suomen Puukerrostalot Oy will construct eco-friendly, safe, smart and sustainable wooden multi-storey residential buildings for Keva.

The company has the exclusive right to import to the Finnish market products manufactured by Lindbäcks Bygg Ab, a Swedish company with 25 years of experience and expertise in the construction of wooden multi-storey buildings, and to develop these products into a solution that will meet Finnish building regulations, first for the Finnish market and later also for the export market.

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