On Monday morning, Finland was forced to rely on imported electricity from Sweden and Norway’s hydropower due to an interruption in electricity production at the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant. The fault in the turbine plant was detected, and the estimated end time for repairs is Wednesday at 1 am. However, it is unclear when production will resume, as it depends on the nature of the fault and the repair estimate.

The Olkiluoto nuclear power plant (OL3) plays a crucial role in stabilizing the price of electricity in Finland, and its sudden outage has caused a ripple effect throughout the country. With no support for wind power during an intensifying frost, this has led to an increase in spot prices, with hourly prices for Tuesday’s stock electricity yet to be determined at 2 p.m.

Pekka Salomaa, director responsible for the energy market at the Energy Industry Association, expects that this outage will result in an increase in electricity prices. He stated that “The fault in OL3 has disrupted electricity production, leaving Finland dependent on imported power from neighboring countries. This will likely lead to higher spot prices for electricity.”

It remains uncertain when production will resume at OL3, but TVO has announced that it expects gradual increases in power output after Wednesday’s estimated end time of 1 am. In the meantime, Finland must continue to rely on imported power sources to meet its energy demands while awaiting repairs to this critical nuclear plant.