Industry Insights
Expert Q&A: An Outlook on Industrial Heat Pump Development
Vahterus welcomed over 200 attendees from across the globe to Turku, Finland, on 16–17 June 2026 for its biennial Heat Pump Forum, where discussions focused on the future of industrial heat pumps and natural refrigeration technologies. To provide a broader outlook on heat pump development, we spoke with forum speakers and industry experts Martin Stage Pihl Andersen (DTI) and Antti Uusitalo (Lappeenranta University) in the below Q&A.
Necessity Is the Mother of Invention, Crisis Is the Driver of Change
The global challenges posed by the climate crisis, Covid-19 and the drop in oil prices are spurring innovation. Pharmaceutical companies are striving to produce vaccines and new medicines, while natural refrigerants and cold recovery through LNG are becoming increasingly energy-efficient solutions.
With Imagination and Innovation, Industry Can Tackle Climate Change
The lower cost of renewable fuels such as solar power is impacting positively on the Energy sector, and they may soon be cheaper than fossil fuel. The Chemical and Process industries are focusing on energy integration in cooling and heating. In the Refrigeration industry, Natural refrigerants are the key to tackling environmental issues.
New Solutions Take Time to Develop
In order to build a safer tomorrow, both for the planet and for people, industries are creating new technologies and solutions. While change can take time, examples of positive trends can be seen in each sector. The rise of heat and exhaust recovery, for example, has been made possible and increasingly efficient by new product innovations.
Sustainability Leads Changes in the Market
As sustainability leads changes in the market, our Refrigeration Business Director Heikki Oksanen, Energy Business Director Tobias Häggblom and Chemical and Process Business Director Marko Rantala share their industry insights and discuss future outlook.
