In the expropriation proceedings that are about to start, the rights of use to be obtained by Fingrid under its expropriation permit will be registered, and compensation to be paid to landowners for financial losses will be determined. The NLS will act as an impartial party in the expropriation procedure to ensure that the legal rights of all parties are fulfilled. For practical reasons, the expropriation procedure for the Järvilinja (Lake Line) construction project has been divided into nine proceedings.
Decisions will be made by the expropriation committee, which is chaired by a cadastral surveyor from the NLS. The cadastral surveyor is Juho Häyhä in the southern section of the power line and Vesa Hallikainen in the north.
The Government granted an expropriation permit for Fingrid in December (in Finnish) on the basis of which it can expropriate a permanent right of use for the 400 + 110 kilovolt (kV) power line. Fingrid will build the new power line partly alongside the current lines or in their place. The new power line will increase the electricity transmission capacity.
Land ownership on the power line route will not change
In the expropriation procedure, Fingrid does not expropriate any land, but rights of use, or the right to build the new power line. The line will restrict tree growth and construction in the power line area. The project is located in the areas of the municipalities and towns of Vaala, Kajaani, Sonkajärvi, Vieremä, Iisalmi, Lapinlahti, Siilinjärvi, Kuopio, Suonenjoki, Leppävirta, Pieksämäki and Joroinen.
The new power line will be built next to the current line, except in the northern part of the route. In some areas, the current towers will be removed and larger ones will be built in their place to transmit a higher voltage level, whereas in other areas the current towers will remain in place and new taller ones will be built next to them.
Expropriation proceedings to start in February
The first meetings of the expropriation proceedings will be held as follows:
• 5 February, 9 am: Iisalmi, Sonkajärvi and Vieremä – LUMA Centre, Iisalmi
• 6 February, 9 am: Vaala – Vuolijoki bank building
• 6 February, 12 noon: Kajaani – Vuolijoki bank building
• 7 February, 9 am: Lapinlahti – Lapinlahti municipal hall
• 7 February, 2 pm: Siilinjärvi – Spa & Hotel Kunnonpaikka
• 8 February, 9 am: Kuopio – Spa & Hotel Kunnonpaikka
• 8 February, 2 pm: Suonenjoki and Leppävirta – Futuria business park
• 9 February, 9 am: Pieksämäki and Joroinen – Kanttila office building
Personal invitations have been sent to anyone who owns a property in these areas and other relevant parties. In addition, public notices of the meetings have been issued.
The purpose of the meetings is to decide on the expropriation of land, after which the expropriating party can start construction.
Questions of compensation will primarily be settled once the construction process has been completed when final losses are known. This is estimated to take place in 2027–2028. However, landowners can demand advance compensation for their assets to be expropriated. Advance compensation can be at most 75% of the estimated amount of final compensation. If no advance compensation is demanded, questions of compensation will be settled once the power line has been completed, at which time the expropriating party must pay 6% annual interest on the compensation amount starting from the takeover date.
Full compensation will be paid for expropriated assets
The grounds for expropriation compensation are laid down by law in great detail. According to the Act on the Redemption of Immovable Property and Special Rights, landowners must receive full compensation for all their financial losses. As a rule, compensation must be paid without needing to present any claims. Because the expropriation committee cannot always have a full knowledge of all losses, the relevant parties can also present their claims for compensation.
‘In this expropriation procedure, as in all similar situations, the expropriating party will pay compensation to landowners for the rights of use it acquires based on fair prices,’ says Mauri Asmundela, Director of Expropriation and Valuation at the NLS.
‘We will determine the market price using various sources. We will closely monitor the property market, any changes in market prices and the resolutions of land courts and the Supreme Court on expropriation compensation,’ Asmundela says.
The purpose of the expropriation procedure is to enable the needs of society, even if landowners are not willing to have power lines built on their land.
Read more
- Expropriation procedure (in Finnish)
- The Finnish Government’s decision on the expropriation permit (in Finnish)
- Web pages for expropriation proceedings
- Fingrid’s project pages (in Finnish)
Further information
Expropriation in general:
Mauri Asmundela, Director, tel. +358 40 576 8944
Expropriation proceedings between Vaala and Iisalmi:
Vesa Hallikainen, cadastral surveyor, chair of the expropriation committee, tel. +358 400 719 025 (available from 26.1. onwards)
Expropriation proceedings between Lapinlahti and Joroinen:
Juho Häyhä, cadastral surveyor, chair of the expropriation committee, tel. +358 40 190 9857
The email format is firstname.lastname@nls.fi