Finnish natural gas market

There is no natural gas production in Finland. Liquified natural gas (LNG) is imported to Finland by ship. Fairly small amounts of biogas produced in Finland are supplied into the natural gas network.

At present, Gasum Oy bears the responsibility for the import, transmission and wholesales of natural gas in Finland. Wholesale customers include large and medium-sized industrial companies, energy companies that produce district heat and electricity, district heat companies, local distribution companies and power companies.

Natural gas is also sold from the local distribution system to smaller sites. The local energy company or a separate local natural gas distribution company usually takes care of the retail sales and local distribution of natural gas. Retail sales account for some 7% of the entire natural gas sales volume in Finland. Most of the natural gas goes directly to large end users. Natural gas is available at around forty locations in Finland.

The Natural Gas Market Act, which has been in force since the beginning of 2018, will open the natural gas market for competition as of the beginning of 2020. The Act also requires separation of the current monopoly Gasum Oy into companies with separate ownership bases for transmission and sales. The retail market will also be opened for competition when import is deregulated.

A gas pipeline connecting Finland and Estonia, Balticconnector, is currently under construction. Completion of the pipeline is expected by the end of 2019.