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Currently, there are around one hundred wind power projects being planned in Finland. The total effect of these is planned to reach 10,000 MW. A third of these projects are planned to be constructed in the region of Ostrobothnia, which has excellent wind conditions.

Although plans of developing wind power have existed for a long time already and there has been a lot of discussion on the topic, no final decisions have been made. There is room for improvement in the planning and permission practices, and the wind power companies are waiting for the feed-in tariff to come into force in order for the constructing of wind power plants to be economically profitable.

Municipalities Encouraged to Plan for Wind Power

The planning of wind power parks has not proceeded that fast in all municipalities. Wind power builders have encouraged municipalities to speed up their land use planning procedure by using arguments such as the tax incomes and job openings the wind power plants will bring.

The Ministry of the Environment aims to promote wind power by subsidizing the municipalities and the regional councils for planning of wind power. In the near future, it will be possible in certain cases to grant a permit for constructing a wind power plant on grounds of a general land use plan only.

Two Projects Underway in Malax

In the municipality of Malax, there are two projects currently running with the aim of constructing wind power parks: Fortum seeks permit to raise wind power plants in Bergö, and EPV Tulivoima in Sidlandet. Of these two, the Fortum project has been included in the regional land use plan as well as proceeded to the final phase of the environmental impact assessment procedure. EPV Tuulivoima's project is on hold and waiting for a parliamentary ruling on the proposed amendment to the Land Use and Building Act, that aims to facilitate land use planning.

- Wind power companies are interested in Malax, because we have good wind conditions, states Mats Brandt, the Municipal Manager of Malax. - While we see renewable energy and future job openings as positive, there are also other matters affecting land use planning and decision-making, such as the opinions of both permanent and summer residents on wind power and the sea eagles' habitat. When decisions on wind power are made, different aspects have to be taken into account.

According to Brandt, the permit procedure for wind power planning should be more coordinated. There have been talks on the need for constructing wind power for such a long time that the procedures for land use planning and assessment of environmental impact could already have been simplified.

Brandt considers the Vaasa Wind Exchange, which will take place in March 2011, as an excellent idea. Decision-makers, wind power builders and suppliers as well as landowners have a chance to gather to discuss wind power. It also offers a meeting place for enterprises in the wind power business. - There are enterprises in Malax and other municipalities in the Vaasa region that could work on renewable energy in the future, describes Brandt.

Text: Johanna Haveri