Energy Shift Forum Helsinki - Slush side event
Energy Shift Forum Helsinki
Innovation and Investment in the Energy Transition
- Official Slush Community Side Event
📍 Venue: Helen, Itämerenkatu 25, 00180 Helsinki, Finland
📅 Date: Thursday, November 20, 2025
🕘 Time: 08:30 – 11:00
🏠 Hosts:
Energy Shift Capital
Helen
Climate KIC
Burson Finland
About the Event
Over €30B AUM in the Room Driving the Future of Energy
Organised during Slush, the Energy Shift Forum Helsinki brings together a global room of investors, innovators, and energy operators to explore how collaboration between scale-ups, corporates, and capital can accelerate innovation in the clean energy transition.
Participants gain behind-the-scenes insights into how energy scale-ups secure transformative investment and meet the leading investors shaping the future of the energy transition.
The program features an operator panel showcasing Series A/B-level energy scale-ups and an investor discussion sharing perspectives from professional investors.
Agenda
Preliminary Program
08:30 – 09:00 | Light Breakfast, Networking
09:00 – 09:10 | Welcome Remarks
Opening by Olli Sirkka, CEO at Helen, Ilkay Demirdag & Risto Kuulasmaa, Co-CEOs at Energy Shift Capital
09:10 – 09:20 | Helen’s Perspective
Anna Kankaanpää and Alexander Rodichev introduce Helen’s role as an enabler of energy transition innovations, sharing insights from Helsinki’s journey toward achieving carbon neutrality by 2030.
Operator Panel
09:20 – 09:50 | Operator Panel — Scaling Energy Transition Innovation. Moderated by Risto Kuulasmaa, Co-CEO at Energy Shift Capital
SPEAKERS
Tommi Nyman — Founder & CEO, Steady Energy (FIN)
Tommi leads Steady Energy, a Finnish pioneer in nuclear district heating powered by small modular reactors (SMRs) to decarbonize urban heating. The company has already raised €32 million to develop its first commercial units, positioning Finland at the forefront of next-generation clean energy.
Juhani Hintikka — CEO, Virta (FIN)
Juhani leads Virta, a fast-growing global electric vehicle charging platform that provides network management, multi-market charging, and integrated energy services. Virta has raised over €120 million to date. Operating in more than 35 countries, Virta connects over 350,000 charging points worldwide and is recognized as one of Europe’s leading innovators in smart electric mobility and energy flexibility.
Per Øyvind Voie — CEO, Vireon (NOR)
Per Øyvind leads Vireon, a fast-growing Nordic green hydrogen company developing zero-emission fuel infrastructure across Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. With more than €25 million raised to date, Vireon is building one of the region’s most advanced hydrogen networks to enable decarbonized heavy transport and industrial operations.
Ask Emil Løvschall-Jensen — Co-founder & CEO, Hyme (DK)
Hyme is a Danish thermal-energy storage company transforming renewable electricity into industrial-grade heat using molten hydroxide salt technology. Backed by €27 million in equity and grants, Hyme has achieved major breakthroughs in corrosion control and long-duration, high-temperature storage.
Investor Panel
09:50 – 10:20 | Investor Panel — Investing in Energy Transition Innovation. Moderated by Mido Talhouni, Investment Principal at Climate-KIC.
SPEAKERS
Lucy Rands — General Partner, ETF Partners (UK)
London-based Lucy Rands is a General Partner at Environmental Techonolgies Fund, one of Europe’s earliest dedicated sustainability and climate-tech venture capital firms. Founded in 2005 and managing approximately $800 million in assets, ETF Partners invests in high-impact companies accelerating the transition to a cleaner and more resilient economy.
Natalia Medianero Aldaba, SC Net Zero Ventures (SPA)
Natalia is an Investment Manager at SC Net Zero Ventures, a €206 million Article 9 SFDR environmental impact fund managed by Suma Capital (AUM €1.2 billion). The fund focuses on Series A and B investments in high-growth climate technologies that accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy, with a particular focus on energy, mobility, industrial decarbonization, and circular-economy solutions across Europe.
Jussi Lilja, Korkia (FIN)
Jussi Lilja is an Executive Vice President at Korkia. Korkia Ltd is a global renewable energy developer and investor with €220 million in assets under management and a project pipeline exceeding 22 GW, comprising more than 150 utility-scale solar and BESS projects across nine countries — the UK, Italy, Greece, Finland, Sweden, Romania, Canada, Chile, and Spain.
Alessa Sänger, Sabancı Climate Ventures (GER)
Alessa is an Investment Associate at Sabancı Climate Ventures, the $200 million climate-tech investment arm of Sabancı Holding, which has a $10.5 billion net asset value.
Sabancı Climate Ventures invests in early- and growth-stage climate technologies that drive decarbonization across energy, mobility, industry, and materials, with a focus on Europe and the United States.
10:30 – 11:00 Networking
✨ Why Attend
Join a global room of investors, innovators, and energy operators during Slush to explore the future of clean energy innovation.
Gain insider perspectives on how breakthrough energy scale-ups attract transformative investment.
Connect with leading investors driving the energy transition and build trusted relationships within the curated Energy Shift community — where capital meets climate innovation.
About Energy Shift Capital
Energy Shift Capital is a trust-based investment platform and an emerging fund, connecting investors with Series A+ energy transition scale-ups across the EU and the US. Our dealflow marketplace enables direct investments, syndicated opportunities, and curated SPVs — closing the critical 10B scaling gap for high-impact energy transition ventures.
About Helen
Helen is one of Finland’s leading energy companies, owned by the City of Helsinki. It provides electricity, district heating and cooling, and smart energy solutions to over 500,000 customers nationwide. Helen is recognized for its ambitious commitment to carbon neutrality by 2030, investing heavily in renewable energy, energy storage, and digital energy systems that make Helsinki one of the world’s most advanced urban energy ecosystems.
About Climate KIC
Climate-KIC is Europe’s leading climate innovation initiative, supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). It builds partnerships across business, academia, and government to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon, climate-resilient society. Through investment programs, education, and systems innovation, Climate-KIC connects capital and scale-ups across the EU to deliver commercially viable climate solutions and unlock pathways for sustainable growth.
About Burson
Burson is a global strategic communications and public affairs firm helping leaders build trust and navigate complexity. Formed through the merger of BCW and Hill & Knowlton, Burson partners with Fortune 500 companies, growth ventures, and public institutions worldwide. In Finland, Burson’s team advises clients across energy, technology, and sustainability sectors—supporting investors and operators with market positioning, stakeholder engagement, and reputation management in the global transition economy.
Nest Step:
Continue the dialogue at Energy Shift Forum Davos, Switzerland, on January 19–23, 2026.