On 15 July 2026, Finland’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment issued a competent authority statement on the environmental impact assessment (EIA) programme for Kuopion Energia Oy’s plan to build a small modular reactor (SMR) plant for district heating in the city of Kuopio. The statement forms part of the EIA procedure for the project.
The plant would have a total rated thermal input of 150 MW or less, spread across up to four reactors producing district heat, with the reactor technology to be specified at a later stage. Two locations are under consideration, Hepomäki and Sorsasalo. In the Hepomäki option a transmission pipe would be laid alongside a new road, while in the Sorsasalo option it would run underwater across Lake Kallavesi. The procedure also examines plans for processing and temporary on-site storage of nuclear waste, other radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel.
The EIA programme was open for public review from 15 April to 15 June 2026. Authorities, communities and residents in the affected area submitted 21 statements and 16 opinions, some carrying dozens of signatories, while international consultation produced 13 further statements. A public information event was held in Kuopio on 27 April 2026.
The Ministry concluded that the programme largely provides an appropriate basis for the assessment. However, because SMRs have not previously been used for district heating in Finland, it asked the developer to specify the technical baseline assumptions, criteria, methods and key uncertainties of the assessment. The report should also address impacts linked to urban structure and land use, emergencies and accidents, the handling and storage of radioactive waste, and effects on soil, bedrock, groundwater, transport and the cultural environment.
Kuopion Energia will now carry out the environmental impact assessment and prepare an EIA report. A further hearing will be arranged once the report is complete, after which the Ministry will issue a reasoned conclusion that feeds into later permit procedures and decision-making. The case reflects growing interest across the Baltic Sea region in small modular reactors as a route to decarbonise heat supply and reinforce energy security.
