The Jäniskoski-Niskakoski area was not a part of the Petsamo panhandle territory transferred from Finland to the USSR earlier in 1947, as a result of Continuation War.

The USSR was interested in the Jäniskoski-Niskakoski territory, because of a hydroelectric power plant formerly located in that area.

On the other hand, the USSR was interested in acquiring and restoring the hydroelectric power plant to secure the electricity supply of the nickel mine in Petsamo.

In addition to paying 700 million Finnish marks,[2] for this small territory, the USSR paid an undisclosed amount to the Finnish company Imatran Voima, which constructed the original power plant, to rebuild the facility and to build two more hydroelectric power plants on the river Paz in Murmansk Oblast of Russia.

Overall, the land sale and power plant construction deal is considered favorable to Finland from the modern historical viewpoint.