Storm Hannes at the end of the year caused more than 40 million euros in costs for Finnish electricity network companies. The total consists of standard compensation paid to customers and the cost of repairing storm damage. The burden was heavy across the sector, but it did not fall evenly: smaller companies were particularly exposed because they have less room to absorb major losses than the largest operators.

According to Svenska Yle, nearly 100,000 customers experienced power cuts lasting more than 12 hours and are therefore entitled to compensation. The lengthy outages were seen in many parts of the country, and for some companies Hannes brought the longest electricity interruptions in their history. That underlines both the severity of the storm and the scale of the damage before connections could be restored.

One of the hardest-hit companies was Kruunupyyn Sähkölaitos. It paid a total of 480,000 euros in compensation to more than 1,480 customers. Repair costs pushed the company’s total losses to nearly one million euros. For a small network operator, a bill of that size is significant, since costs cannot be spread across a broad customer base or larger business operations as easily as at nationwide companies.

The wider industry picture also includes major operators such as Elenia and Caruna, as well as regional companies including Verkko Korpela, Herrfors Verkko, Jylhän Sähköosuuskunta and Kokkolan Energia. The industry body Energiateollisuus has highlighted that the financial effects of storms go well beyond immediate fault repairs, as companies must also cover statutory compensation to customers.

The final cost of Storm Hannes is a reminder that long power outages are both a technical and financial risk for network companies. As interruptions drag on, compensation liabilities rise quickly. The storm is therefore likely to be assessed not only in individual company results, but also more broadly in terms of how well Finland’s electricity grids can withstand increasingly severe weather.