Finland halts work at two Google sites as €13 billion AI push faces scrutiny

Hundreds of hectares of forest clearing are under investigation at two planned Google data centre sites in Finland, where an environmental authority has ordered work to stop pending compulsory reviews. The intervention puts environmental safeguards in focus as the company pursues a €13 billion ($14.6 billion) digital infrastructure investment, according to Al Jazeera, reporting material from AFP and Reuters.

The Finnish Supervisory Agency, known as LVV, directed Tuike Finland, the company representing Google, to suspend preparatory activities that would substantially change the environment at Muhos and Kajaani. The order calls for an immediate halt, with October 23, 2026 as the latest deadline. Work must remain stopped until the required environmental impact assessments—reviews of how projects could affect their surroundings—are completed.

Google announced the investment in September, saying it would spend the money over the following two years to support its artificial intelligence ambitions. Its data centre plans cover Muhos, Vaala, Kajaani and Hamina, and the company has described them as its largest single investment in Europe. The suspension order concerns Muhos and Kajaani, rather than all four locations.

Forest clearing draws a regulatory response

LVV is examining whether Tuike Finland cleared hundreds of hectares of woodland at the two sites without completing a mandatory assessment. Tommi Muilu, who heads the agency’s environment department, said the work included cutting trees, removing topsoil, building site roads and storage areas, and changing ditches. The investigation concerns physical changes already made to the land before the required environmental review.

Hanna Halmeenpaa, chair of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation, told AFP that areas deserving protection had been logged within a cleared tract exceeding 300 hectares. Google spokesman Sondre Ronander acknowledged shortcomings in a statement to AFP and said the company would examine the agency’s conclusions and act on its guidance. He also said Google was developing landscaping and biodiversity plans, including tree planting across 130 hectares at Muhos.

Electricity demand adds another challenge

The dispute comes as the Nordic region’s appeal to data centre developers attracts closer attention from politicians and consumers. Cool weather, plentiful low-carbon electricity and dependable grids have drawn such projects for years. But Finland’s opposition parties called last month for a nationwide permit system to guard against electricity shortages and sharp increases in energy prices.

Finland welcomes data centres, but must ensure sufficient electricity and transmission capacity to serve them, Centre Party leader Antti Kaikkonen told Reuters.

The Social Democratic Party has also welcomed investment while expressing concern about the resulting power demand. Google’s deal included a 22-year agreement to buy up to half the electricity produced by Finland’s Loviisa nuclear power plant. That arrangement helps extend the plant’s expected operating life to 2050, compared with an earlier shutdown date of 2030.

The next deadline is October 14, when Tuike Finland must give LVV an explanation and set out its intended course of action. The agency said failure to comply could trigger enforcement proceedings. Attention now turns to that response, the halt to environmentally disruptive work, and completion of the assessments required for the two sites.