“Wind power is a national and international strength for Finland, promising substantial investments across the country and enabling industrial growth projects that require abundant renewable electricity,” states Renewables Finland in their press release. Renewable energy investments account for the majority of planned investments in Finland and thus provide a significant boost to the economy.
Ilmatar currently has wind power projects in production, under construction, or in planning across 11 Finnish mainland regions and 32 municipalities. Geographically, the projects are concentrated in Western and Northern Finland. According to the latest statistics from Renewables Finland, the company’s onshore wind power capacity under development totals 4,282 MW.
Jussi Mäkinen, Ilmatar’s Head of Project Development, shares the sector’s concern over the proposed setback requirement in the Land Use Act and believes that the reform would hinder economic growth and reduce the social acceptability of wind power development.
“We have been at the forefront of onshore wind development for years, considering both built and planned projects. Due to the large number of projects currently in the permitting phase, we have not launched any new projects this year. Instead, we are focusing on bringing our flagship projects to investment readiness, so that we are prepared to meet the growing electricity demand in the Nordic countries as industrial investments increase,” Mäkinen explains.
According to Mäkinen, the social and political acceptability of renewable energy is high in Ilmatar’s project municipalities, which is essential for project progress. Each project requires a municipal political decision, and local politicians listen carefully to residents’ opinions.
“The acceptability of wind power could be strengthened if projects were more evenly distributed across Finland—including in the South and East. This would spread the benefits of wind power more evenly nationwide and reduce the pressure to start new projects in areas that already have a high concentration of wind power. Unfortunately, the proposed Land Use Act reform does not appear to support this goal; on the contrary, it may make it more difficult,” Mäkinen notes.
The draft Land Use Act reform was open for comment until July. The materials indicate that the reform would limit municipalities’ ability to make independent decisions regarding wind power zoning. In addition, a distance of 2.5–3 km between homes and wind turbines is being proposed. A key concern is the reform’s impact on Finland’s attractiveness as an investment environment. Ilmatar submitted a statement opposing the changes in July, along with hundreds of other stakeholders.
“If the proposed fixed setback distance proceeds in its current form, it risks preventing a significant portion of wind power projects from being realized and reducing Finland’s investment appeal. Now is the time to reconsider—a sustainable and balanced solution would safeguard both economic growth and the acceptability of wind power across the country,” Mäkinen concludes.
