DefMin calling on Jõhvi Municipality to revoke solar park building permit
The Estonian state is demanding Jõhvi municipal government revoke the building permit for the construction of a solar park because the solar panels could interfere with Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) activity in Ida-Viru County. For the municipality, this could mean a sizable damages claim, as the developer had to dismantle the already completed solar park.
Located on the property in question just a few months ago was a 7.5 megawatt (MW) solar panel that had been awaiting authorization for more than two years already. The developer has since dismantled the solar park and hauled it away, however, as it could have interfered with radio communication at an EDF base located half a kilometer away.
Now Estonia's Ministry of Defense is demanding the local municipality revoke the park's building permit and design conditions.
"When issuing our orders, we have [done so] based on laws plus previous experience," Jõhvi Deputy Municipal Mayor Ilmar Aun said. "The law allowed for such things, and by the time the Defense Ministry joined in, the park had already been built."
Jõhvi Municipality has thus found itself stuck between a rock and a hard place. If the orders are not revoked, the state will take the municipality to court. However, should the municipality itself declare its orders to be null and void, they may be looking at a hefty damages claim.
The developer is estimating damages to the company to total more than €17 million, which is comparable in size to Jõhvi Municipality's entire annual budget.
ETV news broadcast "Aktuaalne kaamera" was unable to reach solar park builder Solar Light OÜ for comment.
For Jõhvi Municipality, the whole situation is a new one.
"This whole solar park thing is actually fairly new," Aun acknowledged. "Secondly, it's also quite new that the state has begun enforcing these solar park restrictions particularly aggressively here in Ida-Viru County specifically, which has caused this situation."
Jõhvi municipal government is awaiting permission from the municipal council to negotiate with the developer in order to get a sense of what the actual damages amount could be if the municipality should buckle to pressure from the state and indeed revoke the orders that allowed for the solar park in question to be built.
The municipality has been given until mid-June to reach a compromise.
--
Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!
Editor: Marko Tooming, Aili Vahtla
