Loviisa says 'no' to EOn nuclear plant

10 May 2007

[Helsingin Sanomat, Reuters, 10 May] The city council of Loviisa in southeastern Finland voted 16-11 against a preliminary agreement to sell land to EOn, on which the German utility had proposed to construct a nuclear power plant. In mid-April, the City Board gave initial approval to sell 112 hectares of land located north of the existing two-unit nuclear power plant owned by Fortum to EOn for Eur6.5 million ($8.8 million). Matti Manninen, managing director of EOn's Finnish subsidiary, EOn Suomi, said that safety concerns had played a role in the nullification of the deal as the village of Valko would have remained in the five-kilometre safety zone of the proposed plant. Also, the National Board of Antiquities had opposed the sale of the land as the proposed plant would have been built less than a kilometre from Svartholm sea fortress, which is a protected historical monument. The mayor of Loviisa, Olavi Kaleva, said that the city had no alternative plans at this stage to pursue a land deal with EOn, but it would still consider whether to proceed in some way.

Further information

EOn

WNA's Nuclear Energy in Finland information paper

WNN: EOn buying possible nuclear site in Finland