The electricity transmission capacity between Finland and Sweden is now approximately 2,500 MW. The Aurora Line, which will be completed at the end of 2025, will raise the capacity from Sweden to Finland by 800 MW and from Finland to Sweden by 900 MW.
“The new transmission line will have a major effect on our power system,” says Timo Kiiveri, Executive Vice President at Fingrid.
Fingrid and the Swedish transmission system operator Svenska kraftnät are collaborating to build the Aurora Line, a 400-kilovolt transmission line from Pyhäselkä in Muhos to Messaure in Sweden.
The Aurora Line will carry emission-free wind and hydro power produced in Northern Sweden, making it available to the Finnish market as required.
“The Aurora Line will make our country’s clean power system even cleaner,” says Kiiveri.
Positive impact on the electricity price
Much more electricity will be available in the future, so Finland’s power system will become more reliable.
The new transmission link will also serve to stabilise the electricity price, as the electricity market will become more balanced with the improved availability of electricity.
“Thanks to the Aurora Line, we will also get electricity when it is in short supply in Finland for any reason. This will boost reliability and prevent large price spikes. The electricity price will stabilise,” says Kiiveri.
Important project at the EU level
The Aurora Line will not only benefit Finns—it will also support the Swedish power system. For example, during major construction projects, the Aurora Line can bring approximately 900 MW of electricity from Finland.
“When completed, the Aurora Line will eliminate an electricity transmission bottleneck at the border between Finland and Sweden and improve market flexibility,” says Timo Kiiveri, Executive Vice President at Fingrid.
The Aurora Line is also an important project on a European scale. The EU has awarded the project EUR 127 million in funding from the Connecting Europe Facility. The transmission line between Finland and Sweden will bring European electricity markets closer together.
“The border between Finland and Sweden has been an electricity transmission bottleneck. Eliminating this will improve market flexibility,” says Kiiveri.
The Aurora Line will be completed at the end of 2025
The Aurora Line is something of a mega project, costing over EUR 300 million.
When completed, the transmission line will have a length of 180 km in Sweden and 201 km in Finland. At the time of writing, in October 2024, approximately half had been completed, both in Finland and Sweden. The line is already finished in some places, while construction work is still underway elsewhere.
It is important for occupational safety to coordinate the timetable for the border crossing over the River Tornio in Vuennonkoski. The Swedish team will erect poles, and the Finnish team will install the transmission line from their side over the River Tornio.
“Although the Finnish and Swedish teams are building their sections separately, we are all working toward the same goal and are on the same side. We have overcome all the challenges and risks, and the project is making strong progress.”
The final step is to commission the Aurora Line towards the end of next year. This process will take place in phases over the course of several months.
This series of articles follows the progress of the Aurora Line from design to commissioning.
