HELSINKI (News release) -- Stora Enso has started operations in its new head office, Katajanokan Laituri, in Helsinki, the largest mass timber building in Finland. Showcasing the company's wood products and solutions, the building is a true landmark in sustainable architecture and low-carbon construction. The lightweight, prefabricated mass timber elements allowed the multi-storey, mixed-use building to be the first project in decades to be constructed in the historic, well-preserved as well as culturally significant Helsinki landscape and harbour area.

The building, owned by mutual pension insurance company Varma, was completed on schedule in July 2024. The four-storey Katajanokan Laituri houses Stora Enso's head office and Solo Sokos Hotel Pier 4. The building is also open to the public who now can experience and enjoy the wooden architectural design in its entirety.

The wooden elements used in Katajanokan Laituri have captured 6,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide while the trees were growing. Now the wood will store the carbon in the building for at least the next 100 years. This means that the building stores as much carbon as its 50 years of operation will emit.

"The use of the Sylva by Stora Enso kit of parts enabled the large-scale building to be constructed efficiently in a dense urban environment. It took only 171 just-in-time deliveries and seven months for more than 2,000 bespoke load-bearing wooden elements to be installed on site. The mixed-use building concept allows Katajanokan Laituri's structure to be adaptable for future needs. Thus, the building is flexible in case the usage changes, making it a great example of a sustainable approach to urban planning and construction," says Antto Kauhanen, Business Development Manager at Stora Enso, Wood Products Division.

Katajanokan Laituri was built by Varma in cooperation with Haahtela, who were responsible for project management. The building was designed by Anttinen Oiva Architects.

Stora Enso is a leading provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials and wooden construction, and one of the largest private forest owners in the world.