Sus­tain­able Logis­tics in Focus at Ruu­tikan­gas

Kestävä logis­ti­ik­ka 2026 event brought togeth­er around 150 rep­re­sen­ta­tives from logis­tics com­pa­nies, experts, devel­op­ers, and pub­lic sec­tor orga­ni­za­tions at Ruu­tikan­gas in Limin­ka on 25 Sep­tem­ber to dis­cuss the trans­for­ma­tion of the logis­tics sec­tor, new ener­gy solu­tions, and the oppor­tu­ni­ties offered by data to improve com­pet­i­tive­ness and sus­tain­abil­i­ty.

In the keynote pre­sen­ta­tion, Asso­ciate Pro­fes­sor of Sus­tain­able Logis­tics and Sup­ply Chain Man­age­ment Timo Pohjosen­perä from the Uni­ver­si­ty of Oulu explored the ongo­ing trans­for­ma­tion of the logis­tics indus­try and how emerg­ing tech­nolo­gies can be trans­lat­ed into prac­ti­cal solu­tions.

Mar­jaana Komi from OSAO dis­cussed the impact of EU reg­u­la­tions on the logis­tics sec­tor, with a par­tic­u­lar focus on the devel­op­ment of hydro­gen-pow­ered heavy trans­port mar­kets. In addi­tion, Jyri Mäkelä (Cen­tria) and Tui­ja Väyry­nen (Oamk) pre­sent­ed new busi­ness oppor­tu­ni­ties and pilot ini­tia­tives being imple­ment­ed in the Limin­ka region. The poten­tial of data uti­liza­tion in logis­tics was high­light­ed by Satu Kaup­pinen from Cen­tria.

One of the high­lights of the event was a pan­el dis­cus­sion on alter­na­tive trans­port fuels mod­er­at­ed by Taavi Heikki­nen, Man­ag­ing Direc­tor of SKAL North­ern Fin­land. The dis­cus­sion focused on elec­tri­fi­ca­tion, hydro­gen solu­tions, and the busi­ness oppor­tu­ni­ties cre­at­ed by low-emis­sion logis­tics. Hydro­gen, elec­tric­i­ty, bio­gas, and their respec­tive roles in future trans­port solu­tions gen­er­at­ed par­tic­u­lar­ly live­ly debate.

Dur­ing the after­noon, par­tic­i­pants explored prac­ti­cal inno­va­tions at the exhi­bi­tion area, fea­tur­ing a hybrid trac­tor, an elec­tric tracked vehi­cle, a hydro­gen-pow­ered truck, an elec­tric truck, and an elec­tric bus. Jarkko Koskela, CEO of Ruu­tikun­nat Oy, also intro­duced the Ruu­tikan­gas area and its future devel­op­ment oppor­tu­ni­ties.

The event demon­strat­ed that sus­tain­able logis­tics solu­tions are evolv­ing rapid­ly and cre­at­ing sig­nif­i­cant busi­ness oppor­tu­ni­ties for com­pa­nies across North­ern Fin­land. The future of logis­tics will be built on data, new tech­nolo­gies, and a diverse mix of ener­gy sources, rather than a sin­gle solu­tion. North­ern Fin­land’s long dis­tances fur­ther empha­size the impor­tance of func­tion­ing infra­struc­ture, invest­ments, and close coop­er­a­tion between stake­hold­ers. Achiev­ing a sus­tain­able tran­si­tion requires bold deci­sion-mak­ing and a focus on enabling solu­tions.

The event was orga­nized by the Kier­tokump­pan­it and KV-Kiihdyt­tämö projects in coop­er­a­tion with Cen­tria Uni­ver­si­ty of Applied Sci­ences, Uta­järvi Busi­ness Park Ltd., and the Munic­i­pal­i­ty of Limin­ka. Part­ner orga­ni­za­tions also includ­ed LOGY North­ern Fin­land, Oulu Uni­ver­si­ty of Applied Sci­ences (Oamk), and Busi­nes­sOulu.