Where is there room for consumption and renewable electricity production? Caruna's capacity map has now been published

The number of connection inquiries has grown dramatically—more than doubling in the past few years—as clean transition efforts have driven new connections to the grid, such as solar power installations and EV charging points. However, the new regulatory model introduced by the Energy Authority at the beginning of the year is delaying the investments needed to strengthen the electricity grid. This is affecting customers in areas where grid capacity can no longer meet the rapidly increasing demand.

The longer delivery times for new connections are a direct result of changes made by the Energy Authority to the oversight methods for Finnish electricity distribution operators. This is now reflected in longer lead times for delivering new connections to customers.

"With the capacity map service, it’s easy for large electricity consumers or producers to see where within Caruna’s network area there is still potential capacity to connect, for example, a solar power plant," says Kosti Rautiainen, Customer Director at Caruna.

The map service also allows users to submit a preliminary request for a new medium-voltage connection. These connections are intended for businesses that are large electricity consumers or producers. The goal of the service is to speed up the ordering and planning process.

The map also indicates areas where so much renewable energy is already connected to the grid that no further production can be added without additional network development. The map is primarily intended for companies.

"When a customer wants to connect something like a solar power plant to the grid, they can check the capacity map during the planning phase to find a possible location, submit a connection inquiry, and wait to be contacted by an expert. We deliver new connections in the order inquiries are received, taking into account the network construction needs of each connection. Currently, the minimum delivery time for a medium-voltage connection is 12 months," says Rautiainen.

You can explore Caruna’s Capacity Map at: https://plus.caruna.fi/en/capacities-map