Finland Orders Google Subsidiary to Halt Work at Two Planned Data Center Sites
Regulators cite suspected illegal forest clearing at sites tied to Google's €13 billion Finnish investment.
Finnish authorities have ordered Tuike Finland, a Google subsidiary, to suspend preparatory work at planned data center sites in Muhos and Kajaani over suspected illegal forest clearing, Finnish broadcaster Yle reported.
What happens next
- The order came from Finland's regional environmental authority.
- Tuike Finland has until October 14 to respond.
- Police are examining the Muhos site following a complaint filed on October 2.
The two sites are part of Google's previously announced €13 billion investment in Finland, where the company already operates a large data center campus in Hamina.
A wider pattern
Data center expansion is running into local resistance across Europe over land use, water and power. The Finland order comes as Google signs record power contracts at home, including a 3,590-megawatt deal with Constellation Energy announced this week. European regulators are also increasing scrutiny of the cloud businesses of Amazon and Microsoft.
Google had not publicly commented on the Finnish order at the time of reporting.