NIB funds Kemijoki Oy’s hydropower investments in northern Finland

The Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) and Kemijoki Oy have signed a 15-year EUR 50 million loan to finance the company’s investment programme over 2023–2027.

Kemijoki Oy’s investment programme is for updating and maintaining the company’s hydropower assets and involves innovations such as the short-term energy storage HYCAP (HydroPower Capacity,) as well as a new solution for ensuring fish migration in hydropower sites.

In Kemijoki Oy’s electricity storage development project, HYCAP, the joint use of electricity storage and power plant is being piloted, enabling the power plants to respond to short-term changes in electricity demand and production. The new electricity storage solution was introduced at the Kurkiaska power plant in March 2023, and the intention is to build additional similar units in the future.

Strengthening the migratory fish stocks is a significant part of Kemijoki Oy’s strategic goals and biodiversity programme. The company utilises a new type of floating hydraulic fishway that enables fish to migrate to spawn past dams and other obstacles. Kemijoki Oy is in the permitting process concerning a fishway planned for the Taivalkoski power plant. In 2023 the company will begin developing migration solutions for all its power plants located south of Rovaniemi, allowing migratory fish to migrate up- and downstream from Bay of Bothnia to Ounasjoki river.

“NIB is well positioned to provide the essential long-term financing for investments in hydropower. Notably, this 15-year loan supports Kemijoki Oy’s energy storage technology, which is an innovative solution that enhances Finland’s security of supply,” says André Küüsvek, NIB President and CEO.

“As a trailblazer of sustainable and flexible hydropower, Kemijoki Oy enables the energy transition and everyday life in Finland. In the coming years, we will make significant investments in projects that help us maintain and improve our operational performance and promote biodiversity”, says Markus Katara, Deputy CEO of Kemijoki Oy.

Alongside renovations and power lifts, Kemijoki Oy is continuously carrying out repair and development projects at their power plants to strengthen their security of production and safety.

Established in 1954, Kemijoki Oy is a Mankala company, and its main purpose is to produce electricity at cost for its shareholders. Today, Kemijoki Oy is the most important producer of hydropower and regulating power in Finland, running 20 hydropower plants that produce approximately 4,000–5,000 GWh of electricity annually. It also accounts for over 40% of the balancing power produced in Finland.

NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s. www.nib.int

For further information, please contact

Sebastian Påwals, Director, at +358 10 618 0527, Sebastian.Pawals@nib.int

Iiris Anttalainen, Communications, at +358 10 618 0258, Iiris.Anttalainen@nib.int