Emotions escalate over power line relocation controversy in Haukivuori, Finland

Emotions are running high along the Pohjalahdentie road in Haukivuori, as a local electricity company seeks to replace an outdated power line by relocating it from the forest closer to the road. Landowners in the area are vehemently opposed to this plan. The proposed route for the overhead line spans nearly nine kilometers, with part of it situated on farmland and the remainder through a forest strip.

Dairy farmer Miika Tillikka argues that the new power line should be placed underground. “It’s easy to bury the cable in the fields since there aren’t many rocks,” he said. Fellow farmer Jukka Kohvakka expressed his frustration, asserting that bringing electricity poles onto farmland is outdated. “In Pieksämäki, for instance, another electricity company is placing everything underground.”

Efforts to reconcile the differing views of landowners and the electricity company have been ongoing for years. Initially, the city of Mikkeli sided with the landowners, but the electricity company’s appeal to the administrative court has brought the issue back for reevaluation.

Järvi-Suomen Energia, a subsidiary of Suur-Savon Sähkö, defends its overhead line proposal based on cost and fairness to landowners in its service area. According to Network Director Mika Matikainen, the line is classified as a low-capacity backbone network for rural areas, necessitating an overhead design along the road due to limited demand for electricity in the area.

Matikainen highlights that the cost difference between overhead lines and underground installation over the nine-kilometer stretch is approximately €90,000, a sum that landowners consider negligible. Yet, he insists that fairness for all customers is essential in the company’s investment approach.

The city will soon decide on the placement of the new line. Landowners remain firm in their stance against the poles being installed on their property, emphasizing that the installation should be underground to alleviate their concerns.