Lappeenranta chief says state aid misses hardest-hit border regions

Lappeenranta City Manager Tuomo Sallinen says state support is not reaching the parts of eastern Finland most affected by the closure of the Russian border, Yle reported. He says South Karelia has been overlooked in funding decisions.

Russian visitors once brought significant revenue to Lappeenranta and the wider region. Tourism stopped after the border was closed first by coronavirus restrictions and later by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Sallinen said.

He argues that other regions have sought support by citing the same geopolitical circumstances, even though they have not faced the same problems. Sallinen pointed to North Savo as a region that he believes has received substantial support despite being less affected than South Karelia.

Sallinen said the broad term “eastern Finland” can obscure the scale and seriousness of problems in border communities and lead to support being directed to the wrong places.

The city is also weighing the future of Lappeenranta Airport, Finland’s oldest airport. Sallinen is due to present a proposal at the end of October on whether operations should continue. The airport is run by the Saimaa Airport Foundation, which is part of the city group, and costs the city more than one million euros a year whether or not there are flights.

The airport currently handles flights by authorities and occasional charter services. It is also involved in a LUT University research project to develop electric aviation. Ryanair ended its weekly flights between Lappeenranta and Bergamo in Italy a year ago.

City officials have spent more than a year assessing the airport’s finances, its suitability for Lappeenranta and the rules governing public support for aviation in the European Union. Sallinen said the work had taken too much staff time.

Lappeenranta has an annual budget of about 200 million euros. A mid-year review suggests the city is on course for a surplus of three million euros this year. Sallinen said he does not expect Lappeenranta to need savings on the scale recently made in Kouvola, though he expects more difficult economic conditions ahead. He said the city had planned for them and could decide which measures are appropriate.