Renovation of the Inn power plant at Jettenbach-Töging gets under way

Yesterday, Friday, 13 September 2019, marked the official start to the project for renovating the Jettenbach-Töging power plant. The Bavarian company VERBUND Innkraftwerke took an important step for Bavaria’s energy future together with Minister of Economy and Energy Hubert Aiwanger and other guests. 100 years after the construction began on the construction of the Jettenbach-Tögging power plant, the facility will be completely renovated and modernised by 2022 in order to generate domestic, renewable electricity for around 200,000 households for decades to come. With a total investment of around 250 million euros, it is the biggest hydropower project in Germany. To take account of the historical aspect, a foundation stone containing time capsules was laid, which one day can provide insight into the time around 2019. 

At the beginning of August 2019, VERBUND Innkraftwerke was granted permission to implement the project to renovate and modernise the Jettenbach-Töging power plant. In order to fittingly celebrate the official start of the implementation phase following commencement of the brought-forward construction activities, a celebration was held yesterday, Friday, in Töging. The invitation of VERBUND Innkraftwerke was taken up by many guests from the worlds of politics, administration and business, including Minister of Economy and Energy Hubert Aiwanger, who is responsible for the energy future in Bavaria: “We have to use the opportunities provided by renewable energies – first and foremost those of hydropower.”

Electricity from Bavarian hydropower for Bavaria

Wolfgang Anzengruber, CEO of VERBUND AG and representative of the owners, made reference in his speech to the central role of hydropower in the energy transition. “Domestic and renewable hydropower provides a reliable base load. That makes it the ideal partner for wind and solar. This trinity will have a big impact on the success of the energy transition – assuming that we manage to overcome the ideological hurdles. Because we will need sustainable electricity generation in all its forms. The power plant at Töging is a Bavarian power plant and its renovation gives additional energy to the energy transition in Bavaria.”
Karl Heinz Gruber, managing director of the Bavarian company VERBUND Innkraftwerke GmbH, emphasised the technical progress that has been achieved since the construction of the Jettenbach-Töging power plant: “Hydropower is known for its high level of efficiency, which has still not been fully exploited. Nevertheless, today, 100 years after construction first began, we are in a position at the end of the modernisation programme to generate around 700 million kilowatt hours in three machine sets. Compared to the current state with 14 turbines, that corresponds to an efficiency increase of almost 25%. Hydropower is clean energy all round because we generate not only CO2-free electricity, but also invest in ecological improvements and the habitat along the Inn. So that the generations that follow us can also enjoy clean electricity and an unspoilt environment.”
“Here in Töging, we’re investing in the future – the plant, the location and the region. 250 million euros is an enormous economic stimulus, because in our experience each euro unleashes additional value added effects on a similar scale, which above all are felt in the local and regional economy. At the same time, hydropower demonstrates its ability to perform: 250 million euros for electricity for 200,000 households is a sustainable investment,” added Michael Amerer, managing director of VERBUND Innkraftwerke, about the economic benefits of the project. 

About the project to renovate the Jettenbach-Töging power plant

Construction of the Innkanal began in 1919. The Jettenbach-Töging power plant was put into initial operation in 1924. Since then, water from the Inn, which flows into the approx. 20 km-long Innkanal at Jettenbach, has powered 14 turbines in Töging. 
In 2015, a project of VERBUND Inn power plants for the complete renovation and modernisation of the power plant at Jettenbach-Töging was submitted to the district council office in Mühldorf am Inn for approval. 
The project involving 3 machine sets achieved a power increase of almost 40% (from 85 MW to 118 MW) and an increase in annual electricity generation of around 25% (from 557 GWh to 696 GWh). The planned investment total amounts to 250 million euros. The project is thus by far the biggest hydropower project in Germany. 
Preparatory measures have been under way since the autumn of 2018. Now that the permit is available, a start can be made on actually implementing the project. The construction activities for housing the new machines in a new powerhouse next to the existing facility, which is subordinate to the heritage listed building, are now getting under way. The quantity of water in the Innkanal will also be increased. Corresponding modifications to the canal seal will also take place, as will the construction of a new weir in Jettenbach.