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Sweden Begins Two-Day Move of Kiruna’s Landmark Church to New City Center

The relocation safeguards the 1912 church in response to ground subsidence from the expanding iron‑ore mine.

People look at the Kiruna Church, a Sami style wooden Swedish Lutheran church, called Kiruna Kyrka in Swedish, in Kiruna, Sweden, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, a day before it will be moved along a 5-kilometer (3-mile) route east to a new city center as part of the town's relocation.(AP Photo/Malin Haarala)
Beams placed on an wheeled structure support the Kiruna Church, a Sami style wooden Swedish Lutheran church, called Kiruna Kyrka in Swedish, in Kiruna, Sweden, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, a day before it will be moved along a 5-kilometer (3-mile) route east to a new city center as part of the town's relocation.(AP Photo/Malin Haarala)
Kiruna's historic wooden church sits on wheels before being moved to its new site next to the cemetery, in Kiruna, Sweden August 17, 2025. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

Overview

  • The 672‑ton wooden church set off Tuesday after a blessing, traveling 5 km on remote‑controlled trailers at roughly 0.5 km/h, with arrival slated for Wednesday.
  • Thousands of spectators are expected as SVT livestreams the event branded “The Great Church Walk,” with King Carl XVI Gustaf in town for the move.
  • LKAB is financing the operation, estimated at about 500 million kronor, after widening the route to 24 meters and preparing a total load of roughly 1,200 tons; the separate belltower is due to move next week.
  • The church is one of 23 cultural buildings in a multi‑year relocation that will shift about 3,000 homes and 6,000 residents, following the new city center’s 2022 inauguration.
  • Local Sámi representatives warn that further mine development threatens reindeer migration routes, as LKAB advances projects including Per Geijer, designated an EU Strategic Project.