Energy dispute, strike, mental health and justice

The Trøndelag / Trondheim news over the past 48 hours is dominated by the controversy over hydroelectric power and a strike that has left a reception centre in Trondheim without staff. Two power plant projects threaten six protected waterways in the county, while 76 workers from the social sector and mottak are on strike. World Mental Health Day also brought athletes together in Trondheim, and the courts announced a trial for organised drug trafficking.

Trøndelag news: the battle for six protected rivers

The companies NTE and Nordbotn kraftverk want to build six hydroelectric plants in protected waterways in Trøndelag and Troms (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim). The project concerns in particular Granfossen, in the Verdal watershed, a well-known hiking site in the municipality of Verdal, in Trøndelag.

The Naturvernforbundet opposes it. "We must better prioritise the use we make of electricity," says its acting president, Pernille Bonnevie Hansen (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim). Local leader Grethe Dyrstad adds from Granfossen: "If more electricity is needed for data centres, then we have nothing to give up." She stresses that the site represents "nature at its most beautiful".

NVE figures cited by NRK show that the country's electricity production surplus is shrinking sharply: from 15 TWh in a normal year, it is set to fall significantly in the coming years. The two operators cite this growing need to back their projects on the six basins concerned.

Strike in mottak: Sandmoen unstaffed this weekend

Several dozen members of Fagforbundet and Fellesorganisasjonen are on strike; they work in child protection, care services, charitable organisations and asylum reception centres (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim). At Sandmoen, in Trondheim, the mottak has a dedicated unit housing asylum seekers suffering from physical and psychological disorders.

Ole Valen, regional director of Hero, the company that runs several mottak, warns: "Right now, this weekend we are entering, it is very critical. We fear for life and health." The unit will be completely unstaffed for long periods over the weekend, he says. Normally, two to four employees are on duty; this time, none will be present on Friday evening or during the day on Saturday (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim).

Hero also reports that serious incidents occur regularly in the daily life of this type of facility.

Mental health: trust as the common thread in Trondheim

To mark World Mental Health Day, the SiT sports hall in Trondheim hosted a cheerleading demonstration. Three athletes launch a teammate into the air; she performs a figure before being caught (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim).

"It is important, for those being thrown, to be able to count on the fact that we will catch them," explains Erling Kvalø (25), back on the ground. Christina Juliussen (22) insists: "When you practise figures that carry a risk of injury, it is important to dare to say if you are not comfortable." For Noah Rukundo Nordin (19), trust also comes through communication and a space where everyone can speak out.

Justice: a Swede charged with organised trafficking

A man in his twenties, of Swedish nationality, has been charged with having organised drug transport on behalf of an organised group (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim). "He organised the trip and handled the logistics so they could carry out the trafficking," says Ole Andreas Aftret, acting chief prosecutor.

According to the indictment, the man bought plane tickets, booked hotels and gave instructions on how to travel; two trips made with two different women in autumn 2025 are described. The prosecution considers the offences to fall within the framework of an organised group. "He is someone who is not at the bottom of the ladder, but not at the top either," the magistrate adds.

The man is also being prosecuted for having threatened another man via Snapchat. His lawyer, Dennis Nysted, says he admits the facts. He is also the subject of an investigation for human trafficking.

📌 Local briefs

A projectile passed through the window of a home in Tanem, in the municipality of Trondheim, on Saturday morning shortly after 9 am. Police seized the hunting weapon of a member of a hunting party; a man in his fifties is being prosecuted for careless handling of a firearm (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim).

A man in his thirties was arrested after a fire in a play hut in Øya, a neighbourhood of Trondheim, reported on Saturday at 5:13 am. Police link him to other events in the same area during the night (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim).

A man brandished an air pistol in Trondheim city centre (Midtbyen) on Friday evening (Adresseavisen).

Audun Tveit Kvam received on Friday the gold medal of the Carnegie Heltefond for having saved his neighbour from a smoke-filled flat in Lade, Trondheim, last April (NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim).

An athlete from Trøndelag, in a position to win a World Cup event, collapsed just before the finish (Adresseavisen).

The Minister of Transport, Kamzy Gunaratnam, reportedly travelled to Trøndelag, according to the midday review of NRK Trøndelag.

Sources: NRK Trøndelag / Trondheim, Adresseavisen, The Local Norway — Period: 10 October 2026 and 11 October 2026