Finland halts work on two Google data center sites over missing environmental reviews

Finland's environmental regulator, the Supervisory and Permit Authority (LVV), has ordered a halt to site work at two Google data center projects in the towns of Muhos and Kajaani. The agency said preparatory work that significantly alters the environment, such as clearing land, must stop immediately and no later than October 23, and must stay stopped until mandatory environmental impact assessments for both projects are completed.

The order targets Tuike Finland, the local company that represents Google on the two projects. Regulators had been investigating whether the company cleared forest, stripped topsoil, built roads and storage areas, and altered drainage ditches at the sites before the required environmental review was carried out. Lighter activities, such as planning, measurements and soil studies, are still allowed to continue.

Reports on the scale of the clearing vary. Some put the area affected at roughly 300 hectares at Muhos and close to 200 hectares at Kajaani, while a Finnish nature conservation group told reporters the logged area at Muhos alone topped 300 hectares. The exact combined figure is disputed, but multiple outlets describe it as several hundred hectares cleared before the assessments were finished.

A Google spokesperson acknowledged the problem, saying the company understood the concerns and had "fallen short of our own high standards in this instance." Google said it had acted in good faith, had carried out environmental surveys and protective measures of its own, and pointed to tree-planting work covering 130 hectares at Muhos as part of its response. The company said it would review the regulator's findings and follow its guidance.

Tuike Finland has until October 14 to explain to the LVV how it intends to proceed, and the agency said it could pursue enforcement proceedings if the company does not comply. Finland's environment minister, Sari Multala, said the compliance problems will likely delay the data center projects.

The two sites are part of a roughly 13 billion euro investment Google has described as its largest in Europe, aimed at expanding its cloud and AI infrastructure in the country over the next two years. Local residents and environmental groups have also raised separate concerns about the effect of large data centers on electricity prices and supply in the region.