Around 700,000 people call Oslo, their home. With two-thirds of its area covered by forest, the capital of Norway covers 450 square kilometres. Oslo has embarked on an ambitious journey to drastically cut emissions and become a carbon-negative city.
Oslo reduced its direct greenhouse gas emissions to 970,000 tons of CO2 in 2022—a 28% drop from 2009. This achievement came as a result of its local government's commitment to a bold climate strategy that guides the city towards becoming nearly zero-emission and climate-resilient by 2030. The city is testing and commercializing climate solutions and leveraging biological and industrial carbon capture and storage technologies to become a “carbon-negative" city.
Despite the pandemic and ongoing European energy crises, Oslo's transition is advancing according to plan. In 2022, approximately 55% of the energy used in the city's public works projects was zero-emission, aligning with the city's ambitious environmental goals.
Fossil-free all the way?
Oslo has been engaging with the local building and construction sector since 2015, when the city committed to becoming virtually climate-neutral.
With an annual investment budget of EUR 1-2 billion for public works, including schools, kindergartens, nursing homes, roads, water supply, and metro lines, the local government takes up a 20-30% share of the local construction market.
The climate neutrality goals of the city required fossil-free construction practices in all contracts from 2017. This led the local government to prioritise companies offering zero-emission services since 2019. Currently, the city has set the objective for all public works to be zero-emission by 2025. By 2022, 98% of energy used in construction sites was fossil-free, 55% of which was had been electrified and was emission-free.
In 2022, more than 60 different construction projects used large-scale electric machinery, such as heavy-duty excavators, dumpers and wheel loaders, reducing emissions from this sector by roughly 20-30% about 15,000 tons CO2-eq annually.
Collaboration has been key
This transformation is a result of close cooperation between the city, local industries, and equipment providers, setting clear goals and using public procurement strategically. Oslo supports these efforts with grants for companies investing in zero-emission solutions and is moving towards making zero-emission construction the norm for private developers through local regulations.
A robust financing policy
The financing for these projects comes from the city budget, with a short-term investment cost estimated at 0.5-1% and an expected competitive edge for zero-emission construction by 2030. The approach has proven viable, with significant emission reductions and environmental benefits.
What were the key drivers of an effective implementation?
- Political: Clear goals and ambitions to mitigate climate change
- Economic: Long-term efficiency gains and cost reductions across both public and private stakeholders
- Social: Co-benefits to society like visible environmental improvements, less noise and air pollution
- Technical: Increased reliability, efficiency, and reduced maintenance costs compared to diesel-run machinery.
- Legal: Climate laws and the ability to set strict emission standards and regulations and strengthen these over time.
What challenges and barriers did the city encounter?
- Political: Absence of enabling framework and mitigation targets for zero-emission construction at the national level.
- Economic: The upfront investment for zero-emission equipment remains a barrier for smaller companies despite grants and incentives.
- Technical: Lack of experience among contractors, limited availability of zero-emission construction site equipment and energy supply on sites. There's a need for innovation, new technical solutions, and systems integration. To ensure that the market develops good and durable solutions, it is also important to ensure a demand across many cities.
- Legal: There is a lack of clear emission regulations at both national and EU levels, which hinders consistent progress across different regions.
Lessons learned and Replicability
Zero-emission construction is achievable on a city scale, as demonstrated by Oslo. This approach significantly cuts climate emissions and improves environmental health with minimal short-term costs and potential long-term economic benefits. The benefits extend beyond reducing greenhouse gases; it includes cleaner air, less noise, and lower energy costs due to the efficiency of electric power over fossil fuels, making the city a better place to live and work.
The model Oslo has developed is fully replicable and scalable, with all aspects of the project—from design and market engagement to equipment usage and energy supply—being adaptable for different urban contexts. This comprehensive approach is suitable for any city aiming to reduce emissions, regardless of its size or location, from local to international.
While the approach is universally applicable, cities with strong political will and a commitment to sustainable development stand to benefit the most.
The city's pioneering work has already inspired many Norwegian and European cities, which are exploring zero-emission construction through pilot projects and policy initiatives aimed at promoting innovation and the electrification of the construction sector.
Key preconditions for successful replication include
- Political commitment
- Active market engagement: Cities interested in adopting Oslo’s model should start by engaging with the local market to launch pilot projects, gaining valuable experience and building capacity for larger-scale implementations.
- Strategic public procurement to foster innovation and develop new business models.
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Know more about the Oslo’s journey to climate neutrality
https://www.klimaoslo.no/accelerating-the-transition-to-emission-free-construction/
https://www.euronews.com/business/2023/04/04/how-public-spending-in-oslo-is-driving-zero-emissions-building-sites
https://www.c40knowledgehub.org/s/article/How-Oslo-is-driving-a-transition-to-clean-construction?language=en_US