Google to Invest at Least €13 Billion in Finnish Digital Infrastructure

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 9, Google announced plans to invest at least €13 billion in Finland between 2027 and 2028 to build data centers and other supporting digital infrastructure, with projects spanning Hamina, Kajaani, Muodos, and Vaala. This marks Google's largest single investment in Europe to date. During the construction phase, the projects are expected to contribute an average of €3.6 billion annually to Finland's GDP and support over 37,000 jobs nationwide, of which approximately 16,000 will be in the construction sector. Once the facilities become operational, they are expected to support approximately 7,000 jobs annually.

This investment covers the area surrounding the existing Hamina data center as well as new infrastructure deployments in central and northern Finland. Google has partnered with Fingrid, Finland's national grid operator, and Business Finland on site planning, focusing on deploying new data centers in central and northern Finland near low-carbon power sources and areas with existing transmission infrastructure. A grid modeling study commissioned by Google shows that deploying a hypothetical 1 GW of new electricity load in the Oulu–Kajaani region, rather than in southern Finland, is expected to reduce power system costs by approximately €520 million over a 20-year period.

In parallel with the data center construction, Google has signed a 22-year power purchase agreement with Finnish energy company Fortum for the life extension of the Loviisa nuclear power plant, providing a long-term revenue arrangement for the plant's subsequent life-extension investments. Both units of the Loviisa nuclear power plant have a net electrical output of 507 MW each, and the Finnish government has extended their operating licenses until the end of 2050. Fortum plans to implement approximately €1 billion in life-extension investments by 2050, involving 10 investment portfolios and over 300 individual projects. Google and Fortum have also signed a memorandum of understanding to study new flexibility resources and generation capacity, and to evaluate business models for developing new nuclear units at the Loviisa site.

Google has also signed new onshore wind power purchase agreements with Valorem and Suomen Hyötytuuli, increasing the newly grid-connected onshore wind capacity it supports in Finland to 629 MW. The company has also contracted to build a 94 MW battery energy storage system, located near the Kajaani project, scheduled to become operational by the end of 2027, and plans to enable its onshore wind assets to participate in Fingrid's ancillary services market.

In addition to infrastructure and energy projects, Google plans to invest €31 million over the next four years in Hamina, Kajaani, Muodos, and Vaala for education, community economic development, and related initiatives, of which €10 million will be earmarked for research, development, and innovation. The funding will also support AI skills training for more than 4,400 workers, as well as a data center job training program for 100 Finnish students.