Govt grants fund for carbon reduction projects

The Ministry of the Environment on Monday announced a call for applications by which companies, municipalities, associations, research and educational institutions and other actors may receive funding for projects that promote carbon reduction in the built environment.

The application process is part of the Low-carbon Built Environment Programme of the Ministry of the Environment and Business Finland, where a total of EUR 40 million is being invested in climate work related to the built environment.

The amount of government grants to be applied for this time is EUR 3 million and the deadline for the applications is November 11, said the ministry in a press release.

Grants are offered in seven application rounds. This is the third application round of the Ministry of the Environment, and the last one will be announced in early 2023.

The Ministry of the Environment awards grants for research, development and innovation projects that test and develop new means to mitigate climate change or adapt to it in the built environment.

The project may concern e.g. energy efficiency, construction materials, development of planning and construction processes, or improving the knowledge base, expertise and education and training in the real estate and construction sectors.

Any operator with a business ID who has a good product idea for developing a low-carbon built environment is eligible to submit an application.

With the two earlier application rounds, the Ministry of the Environment has awarded in total about EUR 2.1 million to 29 projects.

The research projects that are under way study construction materials such as low-carbon concrete and natural materials, develop even more effective solutions for saving energy, promote the reuse and recycling of construction materials and produce new calculation methods for carbon dioxide emissions and emission databases for construction products.