Google receives more time on Muhos water plan amid police probe

By Grace Kim

Google’s €13 billion investment program in Finland includes two northern data center sites where regulators have stopped preparatory work. The planned Muhos data center is also under a criminal investigation into suspected environmental damage. The available announcement provides no installed-capacity figure or commissioning date for either site.

What does the filing extension cover?

Finland’s Permit and Supervision Authority, known as LVV, granted Tuike Finland more time to submit a water management plan for the planned data center at Muhos. Tuike is Google’s local subsidiary. The Oulu newspaper Kaleva reported the decision. The filing was due Thursday, Nov. 5.

LVV said the extension was justified because the plan demanded careful preparation. Tuike asked for more time to complete the document. The authority published no new deadline. The extension addresses the filing schedule only. It does not announce a resumption of the broader site work halted on Oct. 6.

That extension follows an active work stoppage, rather than a routine delay in document preparation.

Why did police open a criminal inquiry?

The Oulu Police Department opened a criminal investigation on Oct. 29 into suspected environmental damage at Google’s Muhos site. LVV requested the inquiry. Tuike Finland runs the project.

Detectives said their current information points to irregularities and shortcomings in drainage and water management at the worksite. They have received five requests for an investigation. Officials expect the probe to run into 2027.

Detective Superintendent Kari Pakanen told Reuters: “We are investigating whether the company's operations have breached the Water Act and resulted in environmental damage.”

The inquiry therefore extends beyond unfinished environmental reviews. Police are testing whether site operations breached the Water Act and caused damage. Google has said it will cooperate with the police.

Why did regulators stop site preparation?

LVV ordered Tuike on Oct. 6 to halt preparatory work at Muhos and at a second site, Kajaani-Otanmäki. Environmental impact assessments at both locations remained unfinished. Tuike confirmed on Oct. 14 that work had stopped.

The order bars:

• Further tree removal
• Topsoil stripping
• Excavation
• Drainage

The order also requires a Water Act permit for about nine kilometers of new ditches at Muhos. Most of those ditches were already dug when LVV issued the stop. The permit demand therefore covers a network that is largely complete rather than only planned infrastructure.

LVV said Muhos lies within the impact area of a black schist deposit. The company’s own monitoring already shows changes pointing to acidification of local water. Those findings sit behind LVV’s demand for a complete water management plan.

How much forest was cleared?

The Guardian estimated that 250,000 trees were felled on roughly 815 acres, or 330 hectares, near Muhos. An ecologist with the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation estimated another 150,000 trees at Otanmäki.

These figures remain estimates from reporting and an ecologist. They do not represent a police finding on the total. The Guardian tied its 250,000-tree estimate to the 815-acre Muhos clearing. The Otanmäki estimate came from a separate conservation specialist.

A Google spokesperson said the company has “always worked to meet or exceed zoning, environmental, health, and safety requirements.” The quoted statement gave no revised capacity, schedule or cost for either northern site.

What could happen next?

If Tuike does not take the required measures, LVV may move to administrative enforcement under the Water Act. That path would be backed by a conditional fine. Police plan to release more information in December.

The extended filing window buys Tuike time to prepare. It does not remove the unfinished assessment, drainage-permit or work-stop requirements. Each remains tied to Google’s ability to proceed at the two northern locations.

No price impact or competitive effect can be calculated from the current record, because neither site has a stated capacity or commissioning date in the announcement. Both northern projects remain on hold, leaving the timing of new Finnish data center capacity tied to environmental clearances and the outcome of the police inquiry.