In the remote wilderness of Ivalo, lies the beating heart of Nokian Tyres’ winter expertise: the legendary White Hell test center. This unique facility, known for its harsh conditions and relentless cold, is where our winter tires earn their reputation for safety, performance, and reliability. Although we test our products all over the world, White Hell is the real home of our winter tires.
Founded in 1986 and celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2026, White Hell has grown into the world’s largest and most diverse winter testing environment. Spread across more than 700 hectares—equivalent to over 1,100 football fields— with more than 30 test tracks, it offers an unparalleled range of test surfaces and environments. Four frozen lakes within the facility provide us with the flexibility to shape and rebuild test tracks every winter, ensuring conditions that accurately reflect real-life driving scenarios. In addition to the carefully maintained test tracks, the center includes a 700-meter-long ice hall that enables consistent and accurate testing under any conditions.
A Place Where Winter Never Ends
White Hell owes its dramatic name to the extreme winter conditions that dominate the region for much of the year. Temperatures frequently drop below –30°C, and the winter season stretches long enough to enable more than 200 days of rigorous testing annually. For our engineers, these harsh natural elements are a crucial tool. Only by pushing tires to their limits we can guarantee products that perform flawlessly on everyday winter roads.
White Hell is far more than a test track—it is a development hub where engineers, test drivers, and designers work side by side to perfect the next generation of winter tires. Each prototype undergoes thousands of hours of assessment in conditions that simulate everything from urban winter commutes to extreme Nordic blizzards. The combination of natural Arctic challenges and meticulously designed tracks provides an unmatched environment for innovation.
