The center of Kiruna is being moved from the road to the mine. This year, three historic houses will move, next year ten. The move affects thousands of residents.
In northern Sweden, Kiruna, the city’s migration is starting to accelerate. Senior project manager of mining company LKAB Joel Ahlquist estimates that currently around 2,000 people work directly or indirectly on the relocation of the center of Kiiruna every year.
– We are at the peak of the city’s relocation, Ahlquist says by phone.
The mining company LKAB, which has its headquarters in Kiruna, is expanding and therefore the city center has to move. The ground can collapse under the old center.
The relocation of the city was announced in Kiruna in 2004. The first houses were moved in 2017. The relocation should be completed by 2035.
Some of the houses in the old center will be demolished, some will be preserved and moved due to their cultural and historical value.
The mining company has already moved twenty historical buildings and the same number have yet to be moved. The next wave of moving buildings will begin in the fall with the relocation of three houses. In 2025, about ten buildings will be moved.
– We will transfer the rest in 2026, says Ahlquist.
The relocation of the city center is a gigantic, unique and expensive project. However, it is worth it, because the iron ore obtained from the mine is a strategic raw material for the Swedish state.
The mining company uses a quarter of its profits for relocation
The mining company LKAB has so far spent around 2.6 billion euros on moving Kiiruna and nearby Malmivaara. A quarter of the company’s profits are spent on moving, says senior project manager Joel Ahlquist.
– The Mining Act in Sweden is specific here, meaning that the mining company pays the costs. It’s so profitable to mine iron ore that it’s worth moving an entire city.
A mining company has to build new ones and either demolish or move old buildings in order to get permission to mine iron ore.
The Kiruna mine is the world’s largest underground iron ore mine and it produces more than 80 percent of the European Union’s iron ore. Steel is made from iron ore, which in turn is used in construction and industry.
The old center of Kiruna is already becoming quieter
The old center is gradually becoming quieter. You can still see residents and shops there. State-owned LKAB has been demolishing buildings in the old center 3-6 kilometers from the new center for years. Most of the stores and offices have already moved to new buildings in the new center.
– We build more apartments than we demolish. Currently, 1,800 new apartments are ready, and we have demolished about 1,200-1,300 apartments, Joel Ahlquist estimates.
Finally, after a few years, the old center of Kiruna will become completely silent. Over the years, living in the area of the old center first becomes impossible and eventually even dangerous due to the risk of land subsidence. Because of the explosions, cracks are and have been in the houses.
– The farm will first be replaced by a park and a place for leisure. Later, over the years, the area becomes dangerous and the area is closed, Ahlquist says.
In total, about 22,000 people live in Kiruna.
The move will affect approximately 6,000 residents.
So far, almost half of them have moved.
Joel Ahlquist
The mining company is conducting negotiations with the residents and house owners of the affected area. The company has 12 people working full-time on negotiations and contracts.
According to Joel Ahlquist, the mining company tries to get agreements with the residents 5-10 years before the demolition of the residential building.
“Of course there are people who don’t approve of what we do”
According to Joel Ahlquist, the mining company has already reached an agreement with almost all of the residents, 93 percent.
– Of course there are people who don’t approve of what we do. According to our survey, around 80 percent agree.
The background must be that the mining company LKAB directly employs around 2,500 people in Kiruna alone. In addition, it buys services and products from a couple of thousand subcontractors and smaller companies.
– Mining is the biggest employer in the city, but other important sectors are tourism and space technology, says Ahlquist.
Swedish space center Esrange and Abisko National Park are also located in Kiruna.