Recording of Tuesday, May 06, 2025 | The smarter E Europe | Conference Program | Language: English | Duration: 9:22 .
Harri Salomäki, from Finland's second-largest Distribution System Operator (DSO), Elenia, discusses the company's strategic investments and challenges in modernizing its electrical grid. In response to a 2011 climate event that left many without power for over a week, Finnish regulations now mandate shorter outage durations by 2036. This has necessitated significant investment in converting overhead lines to underground cables due to environmental vulnerabilities of forested areas. Since 2012, Elenia has invested over €1.6 billion towards this goal and plans further investments totaling €2.4 million more than initially anticipated due to rapid changes in environmental conditions. Salomäki emphasizes the importance of communicating these efforts' value to customers amid political debates on funding such projects. He highlights ongoing global supply chain issues affecting material availability as well as technological shifts requiring adaptation within their systems like SmartMeters integration. Elenia aims for sustainable development through collaboration with stakeholders while addressing infrastructure needs amidst evolving energy landscapes globally and locally.
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Harri Salomäki
Head of Asset Management and Partnerships
Elenia
Finland
The global energy landscape is changing rapidly as demand for electricity increases and distributed generation becomes more widespread. In their efforts to modernize and expand an already aging power grid, utilities and grid operators face significant obstacles and challenges in maintaining system stability and resilience. In addition, shortages of skilled labor and materials are slowing infrastructure development. Addressing these issues requires technological innovation, policy reforms, and collaboration across the energy industry. The session will explore how to create a power system that is not only reliable and secure but also flexible enough to adapt the changing energy landscape.
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Recording of presentation not authorized for publication.
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Recording of presentation not authorized for publication.