The connection of electricity consumption facilities to the main grid is temporarily tight in southern Finland

Local restrictions will apply when connecting new industrial electricity consumption facilities to the main grid in southern Finland from 2025 to 2027, after which the investments in reinforcing the main grid will be completed. The shortage of connection capacity is temporary and caused by faster than anticipated growth in electricity consumption and the decommissioning of regionally adjustable electricity production capacity in southern Finland.

The main grid’s connection capacity will be temporarily and locally restricted in the Uusimaa, Southwest Finland and Häme regions. The shortage of connection capacity is due to faster than anticipated growth in electricity consumption in southern Finland, coinciding with the decommissioning of regional combined heat and power production. The end of electricity imports from Russia has exacerbated the situation.

In practice, this means that from 2025 to 2027, large new electricity consumption projects may have to wait longer than normal to connect to the main grid. Limited connectivity applies to new industrial-scale demand facilities that have not yet agreed upon a connection to the grid.

The investments in reinforcing the main grid will be completed gradually and will alleviate the shortage of connection capacity. These include the construction of new transmission lines, the addition of substation transformers, and various compensation solutions to maintain the voltage of the power system. A substantial proportion of Fingrid’s €4 billion investment programme is allocated to enabling more consumption in southern Finland and facilitating the clean transition of the power system.

“Without a doubt, this is an inconvenient situation for our customers. Faster growth of electricity consumption than anticipated and the decommissioning of electricity production pose regional challenges for the transmission capacity and connectivity of the main grid,” says Jussi Jyrinsalo, Senior Vice President of Main Grid Services at Fingrid.

“Our investment programme will address this challenge in the coming years, and we will strive to facilitate as many main grid connections for customers as possible through effective cooperation,” Jyrinsalo continues.

New electricity consumption facilities offering flexible capacity and customers engaging in close cooperation with the transmission and distribution system operators can contribute to connecting new electricity consumption facilities in southern Finland. Adequate connection capacity can also be ensured by keeping regional adjustable electricity production, especially combined heat and power production, in service over the coming years.

Further information:

Jussi Jyrinsalo, Senior Vice President, Fingrid Oyj, tel. +358 30 3955118

Email addresses are in the form firstname.lastname@fingrid.fi