Espoo leasing land for office space in Kiviruukki to NCC – Cleantech Garden construction moves forward
The City of Espoo is leasing the land for the office space to NCC Property Development with an option to buy. Leasing the land is part of the Cleantech Garden project in which a unique innovation bioeconomy and circular economy innovation cluster is to be built in Kiviruukki. The Business and Competitiveness Subcommittee of the Espoo City Board will decide on renting the land at its meeting on 3 June.
The plot of land is in the Kiviruukki area in Kivenlahti on the north side of the Länsiväylä motorway, bordered by Ruukinmestarintie and Ruukintie.
The VTT Bioruukki pilot centre was established in Kiviruukki in 2015. It is the largest research and innovation platform for process technologies of bio-based products and circular economy solutions in the Nordic Countries. Bioruukki also serves as a pilot centre and innovation platform for bio-based products. Bioruukki allows companies and organisations of different sizes to develop their own circular economy solutions.
VTT is currently expanding the Bioruukki facilities to meet the needs of low-carbon transport and hydrogen economy research. Together with the Cleantech Garden project that will be built next to it, the area will bring together companies, research, and education that focus on clean technology. Leasing the land to NCC is part of this project, which will give Kiviruukki a unique innovation cluster of bio-based products and the circular economy.
In the future Cleantech Garden will focus on a carbon neutral energy economy, transportation of the future, a sustainable food system, and a circular economy based on biomass.
The campus will be in the immediate vicinity of the Kivenlahti Metro station and the Länsiväylä motorway, making it easily accessible by both public transport and by car.
The leased property will initially need an office building with about 4,500 square metres of floor space. The maximum floor space on the property will be 14,500 square metres.
The lease period for the land is 30 years. The tenant will also have the option to buy the property.
Old Kiviruukki industrial area to develop into a versatile urban centre
In the coming decades the Kiviruukki area will develop into a versatile residential, study, and work area. The Kiviruukki component master plan for 2040 includes plans for 3,000 workplaces and 9,000 new residents.
“Espoo has a reputation for prioritising education and research. With the construction of Kiviruukki Espoo is reinforcing its position as an internationally interesting city of innovation”, says Olli Isotalo, Urban Environment Director of the City of Espoo.
Also participating in the Cleantech Garden project is Omnia, the Joint Authority of Education in the Espoo region, which is planning new teaching facilities in Kiviruukki. The facilities will become a part of the planned whole.
There are also plans for a new West Espoo Upper Secondary School for 1,200 students, which is to start operations in the autumn of 2027. The Espoo City Council approved the plan for the school project in January 2024.