Clean electricity is Finland’s key asset and competitive advantage in attracting green industrial investments. The greatest potential for rapidly increasing electricity production lies in onshore wind power, which is the most cost-effective way to add new electricity capacity in Finland. Renewables Finland considers the wind power-related proposals in the government’s mid-term mid-term policy review as a threat to both Finland’s climate goals and regional vitality. The proposed new distance requirements and zoning restrictions would significantly hinder the implementation of new wind power projects.
According to the government’s own objectives, the aim is to multiply Finland’s clean electricity production and strengthen its position and competitiveness as a forerunner in clean energy. However, the government’s wind power policy decisions made during the mid-term policy session contradict these very goals.
“If regulation in practice prevents new wind power projects, it’s hard to see how clean electricity will be added quickly. These decisions create obstacles to exactly what the government says it wants to promote,” says Anni Mikkonen, CEO of Renewables Finland.
The government’s decision to introduce a minimum setback distance of 8 times the total height of the wind turbine from residential areas is in direct conflict with its own stated goals.
“The new provisions would require turbines to be placed at least 2–3 kilometers from housing. Even a 1.5-kilometer setback already causes significant restrictions, as shown in an earlier FCG report commissioned by the Ministry of the Environment. The proposed exemption allowing a shorter distance with landowner consent introduces flexibility, but in practice it will apply to several landowners and may lead to complex negotiations,” Mikkonen explains.
According to the government, the proposed setback would not apply in regional land-use plans, where wind power zones could be placed closer to housing.
“This shifts responsibility for the green transition to regional planners and decision-makers. If regional plans do not allow wind power zones significantly closer to settlements than what the government suggests, there simply won’t be suitable locations for onshore wind in Finland,” Mikkonen summarizes. The decision also means that in Southern Finland even small wind power projects will require regional-level zoning, adding bureaucracy and delaying project timelines.
Currently, the impacts of wind power projects are comprehensively assessed through land-use planning and environmental impact assessments. The required distances between wind turbines and residential areas are already strictly regulated through the Finnish Government Decree on noise levels (1107/2015) and guidelines by the Ministry of the Environment. Together, these form one of the strictest regulatory frameworks in Europe for wind turbine siting.
The government also announced its intention to promote hydrogen production. Renewables Finland reminds policymakers that developing a hydrogen economy will require a substantial increase in zero-emission electricity.
“It’s hard to understand how the government plans to kickstart the hydrogen economy while simultaneously making renewable electricity production much more difficult. These decisions undermine their own hydrogen vision,” Mikkonen concludes.
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