Armed Forces to invest almost NOK 2.5 billion in Finnmark
The Norwegian Armed Forces will invest close to NOK 2.5 billion in Finnmark, distributed between Sør-Varanger and Porsanger.
More than 500 soldiers will be stationed at the Porsangmoen military camp.
In January, 150 new soldiers will be in place at Porsangmoen, said Klassekampen newspaper.
‘’Our task is to be present. We must deter and defend ourselves against any threat,” said Colonel Jørn Erik Berntsen, who heads the newly created Finnmark National Defense.
Porsanger will invest at least NOK 1.5 billion, including half a billion for housing for military employees. In Sør-Varanger, the activity has also increased, and so far more than one billion has been spent on a modern defence force, including two new border stations and for electronic monitoring of the border with Russia.
Porsangmoen, south of Lakselv, was a complete military camp and had up to 1500 soldiers when the activity was at its highest.
Reduced activity
At the end of the 1990s, activity was sharply reduced. Now, defence building includes some buildings being demolished and some being rebuilt.
One of the country’s largest airports, Banak, is close by. Here too, Colonel Berntsen assumes that the military activity will increase in the coming years.
The Armed Forces stated that Porsangmoen is to be supplied with a cavalry battalion. With permanent employees and conscripts, this means about 400 people. In the summer of 2019, a separate recruitment and vocational school will be established at Porsangmoen under the auspices of the Army Arms School, and Porsangmoen camp will be upgraded from 2021.
By 2022, the Porsanger Battalion will be fully operational with armoured CV-90s, the Army’s most modern tank.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
