Today, 1 April 2025, Helen Ltd, one of the largest energy companies in Finland, shuts down its last coal-fired power plant in Salmisaari, Helsinki. Even though it’s April Fools’ Day today, this is no joke.
I was going to walk my dog when I heard about the closure and decided to grab a couple of photos of this historic moment. I’ve been living close to Salmisaari for about five years now, so it’s a big part of my everyday landscape. I have photographed the power plant many times when walking at the shore.
Salmisaari area is really photogenic and it’s a real pleasure to stroll at the shore. When the wind is calm, the reflection in the water is really nice. And when there are no clouds or when the clouds are thin enough, the setting sun will reflect from the windows as you’ll see in the upper right image.
The closure of the Salmisaari power plant is a good thing because it will reduce carbon dioxide emissions and it increases self-sufficiency in Finnish energy production. Heat will be produced by burning wood pellets and with two new electric boilers.
The Salmisaari A power plant first generated electricity in 1953 and provided district heating in 1957. It was designed by architects Vera Rosendal and Hilding Ekelund. Salmisaari B went into operation in 1984. It was designed by architects Timo Penttilä with Heikki Saarela and Kari Lind.
You can read more here.