Stegenwald power plant: measures remain in place in the Salzach, work on the power plant continues

The Stegenwald hydropower plant is an important element for the energy transition, for supply security and independence. The project operators VERBUND and Salzburg AG are working as quickly as possible on getting a nature conservation permit again with a valid decision. The partial stop on construction remains in place for the time being.

Shaping a renewable energy future requires a joint effort to make the climate transition a success. The aim of Salzburg’s climate and energy strategy is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 (compared to 2005) and for renewable energy sources to have a 65% share in the energy mix. The Stegenwald hydropower plant is an important element of this project. It will generate the average annual electricity requirement of around 20,000 households from domestic renewable hydropower. This will enable the replacement of around 73 million kWh of fossil-fuelled electricity. At the same time, this will mean greater independence and enhanced security of supply for Salzburg.

After 4 years of assessment and subsequent approval procedures lasting around 8 years, the Salzburg Provincial Administrative Court (LVwG) issued a positive nature conservation permit in 2022 that provided all the necessary authorisations. The extraordinary appeal by the State Environmental Ombudsman’s Office (LUA) had no suspensory effect. After assessing all factors (economic framework conditions, natural events such as flooding, construction logistics such as delivery conditions, legal risks, etc.), the project partners VERBUND and Salzburg AG decided to launch the €100 million project in order to rapidly advance the energy transition and shape the renewable energy future. This procedure is typical for such projects. The construction work is being carried out in close coordination with the authorities and the ecological building inspectorate.

Last week, the Administrative Court of Justice (VwGH) overturned the decision of the Salzburg Provincial Administrative Court based on the extraordinary appeal by the Provincial Environmental Ombudsman's Office (LUA) regarding the nature conservation permit due to formal reasons in the justification and not because of substantive failures on the part of the project applicants. The project operators VERBUND and Salzburg AG have spent the last few days carefully examining the impact of this decision on the Stegenwald power plant construction site.

Rapid clarification sought

Work in the Salzach and its tributaries will remain suspended until further notice. This includes all river engineering measures in the Salzach and all construction sites of the torrent defence structures on the Eckhartgraben and Schmergraben belonging to the project. Safety-relevant measures for bank protection and flood protection and activities to secure the construction site in terms of hydraulic engineering are to be implemented quickly in coordination with the water authority.

This partial construction stop also affects the nature conservation work such as the construction of gravel islands, parts of the technical fish bypasses as well as recultivation and ecological structuring measures (application of humus, greening work, introduction of rootstock).

The hydraulic engineering and plant engineering work on the future powerhouse and the weir system will continue as planned, as these are located outside the Salzach riverbed and are therefore not affected by the suspension of the nature conservation permit. The facility is currently being equipped with the first mechanical and hydraulic steel components and work is being carried out on the base ramp directly above the power plant.

It is currently not possible to estimate how long the partial construction freeze will last. VERBUND and Salzburg AG are working as quickly as possible to get a nature conservation permit again with a valid decision. It is now up to the Salzburg Provincial Administrative Court. In the interests of the energy transition and nature conservation, the project operators are hoping for a quick decision so that construction on the site can be completed in an orderly manner. The schedule to connect the power plant to the grid in mid-2025 remains unchanged. The resulting additional costs depend on the duration of the partial construction stop and cannot be estimated with any precision from today’s perspective. It is assumed that the additional costs will be in the low million euro range.

Please direct inquiries to Salzburg AG:
Michael Frostel
0676 86821207