The year of action 2024: our responsibility report is now published
24/04/2025
In 2024, we continued our determined work for corporate responsibility and took further concrete steps toward a more sustainable future.
Investments in energy efficiency and emissions reduction
We made significant investments to improve energy efficiency and replace fossil fuels with renewable energy sources. For example, at Press Line 3, we replaced liquefied gas-powered billet heating equipment with modern electric solutions, reducing our CO₂ emissions by 900 tonnes per year.
At our Luoma-aho foundry, we introduced a heat recovery system that enables process water in our paint shops to be heated without liquefied gas. A similar project was implemented at our Voikkaa unit, where replacing natural gas in process water heating reduces emissions by 204 tonnes per year.
Award-winning sustainability efforts
The renewal of the energy system at our anodising plant received both national and international recognition. We were awarded the Energy Genius of the Year 2024 by the Energiavirasto (Energy Authority), the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, and Motiva (a state-owned company specialising in sustainable development), in recognition of our responsible energy use.
We also won the Net-Zero Industries Award in the Outstanding Projects category, highlighting our innovation in reducing industrial carbon emissions.
“We have achieved permanent improvements that are reflected in both emission figures and daily operations. The fact that our work has gained international recognition is a sign of true success,” says Päivi Venesoja, EHSQ Manager at Mäkelä Alu.
People at the centre
People are at the heart of our sustainability work. We have invested in strengthening our safety culture, supporting employee wellbeing, and encouraging continuous learning. We have also supported local sports clubs, helping to promote regional wellbeing.
Our 2024 employee satisfaction survey showed improvement in all key areas.
“In recent years, we have especially focused on developing supervisor work and the training provided to support it. It’s great to see that these efforts are now being reflected in our employee satisfaction results,” says Jenni Hautakangas, HR Manager.
Moving forward together
Sustainability is not just a collection of individual actions – it is a shared goal for our entire work community.
“Responsibility is part of our everyday work. It has been truly rewarding to see how we, as a team, have committed to our shared goals and successfully taken concrete steps to achieve them,” says CEO Marko Orpana.
These actions are part of our ongoing commitment to sustainability and continuous development. We are proud of what we have accomplished and we will continue working toward an even more sustainable future.
Read our 2024 Responsibility Report on Issuu.
You can download the report here: Mäkelä Alu Oy Responsibility Report 2024.
The report is also available in our Material bank.
