Overview
- Police in Oulu opened a preliminary criminal investigation on Thursday into clearing and drainage work at Tuike Finland’s Muhos site after regulators said required environmental impact assessments were not completed.
- Finland’s Supervisory Agency ordered Tuike to halt preparatory site‑altering work at Muhos and a second Kajaani‑Otanmäki site because water‑management plans and EIAs were incomplete.
- Investigators are probing ambiguities and shortcomings in drainage and water management and will examine possible breaches of the Water Act that could have harmed local waterways and soil.
- Google’s Finland country manager apologised, the company said it is cooperating with authorities and plans biodiversity and replanting measures, and Tuike must submit a detailed water‑management plan by early November.
- The case could mean corporate fines or conditional enforcement, delay part of Google’s roughly $15 billion European build plan, heighten local political pressure and set a precedent for permitting of future hyperscaler projects.