PKS board holds the decision on Palokki power plant sale
Friday 16th October 2026 on 08:15 in
Finland
North Karelia Electricity’s board could reject the state’s offers for the Palokki hydroelectric plant, even if the company’s municipal owners support a sale, Yle reports. Three board members say the offers remain too low.
The state wants to buy the plant and its dam in Heinävesi, then remove the dam to make room for endangered migratory fish. It has offered €30 million for an immediate purchase or at least €40 million after a monitoring period. North Karelia Electricity, known as PKS, has not accepted either offer, saying they amount to less than half the plant’s value.
Municipalities that own PKS are being asked to give their views. The question puts local decision-makers between potential benefits for nature and tourism, and concerns about the price and security of electricity supply. However, their views may not determine the outcome: the company’s board can reject the offers.
PKS board chair Paavo Haverinen and members Teemu Mustonen and Jarkko Toivanen support the board’s previous view that the offers are insufficient. Anna Puruskainen-Saarelainen and Tarja Timonen did not state their positions directly. Olli-Pekka Mielonen and Solja Törnqvist declined to comment.
Timonen said by text message that the board had already assessed the offer carefully. She said the issue concerns not only one power plant but also, among other things, the self-sufficiency of the whole North Karelia region. Board members said they must act in the company’s interests. Puruskainen-Saarelainen and Toivanen also noted that board members may be personally liable for negligent decisions.
PKS chief executive Tuure Aho said in an email that the owners decide matters related to a possible sale and how they are handled. The company did not provide further comment.
The Palokki dam and power plant were built in 1961 on the Palokki rapids in Heinävesi. The dam prevents the critically endangered Lake Saimaa brown trout from reproducing in the area. The government programme adopted in 2023 set a goal of removing the dam, in what would be Finland’s largest river restoration project. The restoration could help fish reproduce and boost tourism.
The state made its two offers in June 2026. If PKS’s owners are dissatisfied with the board, they can call an extraordinary general meeting.