NIB finances construction of Ylva’s green building complex Lyyra in Helsinki

NIB has signed a 7-year loan agreement to finance the construction of the Lyyra building complex in Hakaniemi, Helsinki, which aims to achieve LEED Platinum certification upon completion of currently ongoing construction work by 2023.

The loan NIB has signed with Helsingin Lyyra KY will finance facilities for office, hotel, retail, housing, and parking services. NIB’s share of the EUR 65 million co-financing with Nordea is EUR 40 million. The Lyyra complex is situated at Toinen linja 7 and Siltasaarenkatu 13 in the eastern downtown area Hakaniemi in Helsinki, and construction is ongoing. The building complex will have a direct access to the Hakaniemi metro station.

The Lyyra building complex is designed according to best-in-class energy-efficiency standards and aims to achieve LEED Platinum. In addition to the green building certification, Ylva has completed a lifecycle assessment of the buildings’ carbon footprint and is committed to net-zero-carbon operations.

Construction of the Lyyra complex includes several measures to improve sustainability of the building such as reducing embodied carbon, installation of solar photovoltaic cells, options for implementing energy recovery via heat pumps and 97% material recovery rate for demolition waste. The loan project is eligible to be funded by NIB Environmental Bond proceeds.

“In July 2021, we established a new joint venture together with Varma, one of Finland’s largest pension insurance companies. The loan signed today continues to strengthen the Lyyra project’s position as the most significant new destination in Helsinki’s eastern city center. We are pleased that NIB shares our values and believes in our mission to develop and build a more sustainable Helsinki for all its citizens,” says Leea Tolvas, CEO of Ylva.

“Lyyra is showing the way in building construction by including a carbon lifecycle assessment and ambitious targets for material recovery and reducing the building’s footprint,” says André Küüsvek, President and CEO of NIB.

The office building is scheduled to be completed in early 2023, and the residential, retail and hotel building during the second half of that year. Combined, the two buildings will have 18,400 square metres of leasable area.

The limited partnership company Helsingin Lyyra KY set up for the project is owned by Ylva (55%), the asset manager of the Student Union of the University of Helsinki, and Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company (45%).

NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.

For further information, please contact
Mr Martin Lundström, Senior Client Executive, Project Finance,
+358 10 618 0426, martin.lundstrom@nib.int

Mr Arild Moen, Communications Manager, +358 10 618 0496, arild.moen@nib.int