First streets in battery factory area completed - street infrastructure enables easy access to plots

The first streets running through the battery factory area to be completed were Tuotantotie, which is approximately 2.5 kilometres in length, and its side road Kuriirintie. Tuotantotie also serves as the main street of the entire factory area.

– Both streets are more than 20 metres in width, of which the road itself accounts for 8.5 metres, while a  pedestrian and bicycle path comprise a further four metres. For the time being the streets still have a gravel surface but will be asphalted in stages. Tuotantotie and Kuriirintie will receive their first permanent surface covering this coming summer, explains Project Engineer Tiina Skön.

Both streets were built as a joint project of the municipalities of Vaasa and Mustasaari. In addition to this, 420 metres of the road known as Logistiikkaväylä were built on the Mustasaari side, which connects to the already existing Logistiikkaväylä.

A working infrastructure promotes investments in the region

A huge amount of municipal technology, stormwater and process water networks, telecommunication connections, and lighting and electrical cabling have been laid under the streets.

– The completion of the streets is an excellent thing in itself, but what is most significant in terms of the development of the area is the infrastructure built below them, which enables players within the battery industry to easily connect to the plots, says Marko Kuokkanen, who has responsibility for the sales and marketing of the GigaVaasa team.

GigaVaasa has a total area of approximately one thousand hectares and can accommodate several plots and different size areas. Having a working infrastructure is crucial when it comes to the willingness of battery factory operators to invest in the area.

– GigaVaasa’s so-called Plug and Play concept is something that we believe will promote investments in the area. An operator coming here can connect to the existing infrastructure and focus on their own core operations, Kuokkanen continues.

Construction work on other streets and roads in the area is also currently underway. Next, Ratavallinkatu and Laajametsäntie will be completed according to the general detailed plan. At the same time, the smaller Kaivinkoneenkatu, Puskutraktorinkatu and Rekkakatu are also being built. These are supposed to be completed by September of next year.

The construction of the road network has cost the City of Vaasa about 8.6 million so far, of which the share of the public water utility company Vaasan Vesi is about 2.1 million.