Security of supply

Personal safety and the sites that are critical to the functioning of society are top priorities in our preparedness programme.

The Finnish government is preparing a draft decree on defining the critical electricity consumption facilities in the event of an electricity shortage. Until the decree takes effect, network companies have their own plans stating which sites take priority in a state of emergency. The decree is expected to come into force on 1 December 2022.

Preparations for power cuts in the event of an electricity shortage

Electricity shortages are rare, and power will only be cut if it is absolutely necessary. Reserve power plants and system reserves will be used before imposing distribution outages. Careful prioritisation of sites helps us to safeguard the livelihoods and safety of citizens under extraordinary circumstances. At the same time, we ensure sites that are critical to the functioning of society, such as hospitals, do not suffer power cuts.

If distribution network operators prioritise consumption facilities, we can avoid forcing the transmission system operator, Fingrid, to impose an outage on electricity distribution to a larger area. The worst possible outcome of such an event would be the collapse of the main grid, leaving large areas with no electricity.

Caruna has made contingency and emergency plans for use in electricity shortages. We are prepared to face extraordinary circumstances together with our stakeholders, such as the rescue services. We review various scenarios and conduct exercises.