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Finland orders Google subsidiary to halt data center projects over environmental reviews

Finnish authorities have ordered Google subsidiary Tuike Finland Oy to suspend construction on two planned data centers in Muhos and Kajaani until environmental impact assessments are finished.

Aerial view of a cleared construction site and access area adjacent to a forested landscape in Finland.
Image: @CNBC

Finnish regulators have ordered Google subsidiary Tuike Finland Oy to halt data center construction in Muhos and Kajaani, according to reports by CNBC and Techmeme. The Finnish Licensing and Supervision Agency (LVV) issued the notice directing building work to be suspended by October 23 until environmental impact assessments have been completed.[3][6]

The stoppage follows environmental concerns surrounding land clearing for the facilities. TNW reported that about 300 hectares of forest had already been cleared across the two project locations before reviews took place. Polymarket and Tom's Hardware also reported that the halt relates to deforestation and the removal of hundreds of hectares of forest. CNBC noted that the facilities are located in an area dubbed the "Texas of Europe."[1][2][4][5][6]

The intervention comes on the heels of substantial infrastructure commitments from the tech giant. Google had committed to investing $15 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure in Finland roughly a month earlier, according to CNBC, while TNW placed the promised investment figure at €13 billion.[4][5][6]

Key facts

  • The Finnish Licensing and Supervision Agency (LVV) issued a notice ordering Google subsidiary Tuike Finland Oy to halt data center construction in Muhos and Kajaani.
  • The construction halt is required to take effect by October 23 pending the completion of environmental impact assessments.
  • The halt was triggered by environmental concerns after about 300 hectares of forest were cleared across the two data center sites.
  • The order occurred roughly a month after Google pledged to invest $15 billion in Finnish AI infrastructure, reported by TNW as €13 billion.
  • CNBC referred to the data center location in Finland as a region dubbed the "Texas of Europe."

Sources · 5 sources

  1. PO

    Polymarket@PolymarketPost on X ·

    JUST IN: Finland orders work halted at two Google data center sites over environmental concerns tied to the clearing of hundreds of hectares of pristine forest.

    Open source
  2. CN

    CNBC@CNBCPost on X ·

    Google ordered to halt work on two data centers in ‘Texas of Europe’ https://t.co/o7bWVbXv77

    Open source
  3. TE

    Techmeme@TechmemePost on X ·

    Finland orders Google subsidiary Tuike Finland Oy to halt data center construction in Muhos and Kajaani by October 23, pending environmental impact assessments (@nicolschwarzk / CNBC) (Visit Techmeme dot com for the link and full context!)

    Open source
  4. TN

    TNW@thenextwebPost on X ·

    Google promised Finland €13B. Trees fell before the review. Finland halted 2 data centre sites with about 300 hectares gone. https://t.co/yEmkfQNjR6 https://t.co/WkyebnUmTP

    Open source
  5. TH

    Tom's Hardware@tomshardwarePost on X ·

    Finland orders Google to stop work on two AI data centers over alleged deforestation https://t.co/1mjQUpG41S

    Open source
  6. CN

    CNBC@CNBCPost on X ·

    Google has been ordered to halt work on two data centers it’s developing in Finland, a month after the tech giant committed to investing $15 billion in AI infrastructure in the country. Finnish Licensing and Supervision Agency (LVV) on Tuesday issued a notice to Google subsidiary, Tuike Finland Oy, to suspend building work for data center projects planned for Muhos and Kajaani until the environmental impact assessments have been completed. Read more: https://t.co/Jrqsc8qg2a

    Open source