The cavern power plant is scheduled to go online in 2028 and have an output of 170 megawatts
With the symbolic groundbreaking for what has been planned since 2010 Pumped storage power plant in Ebensee (Gmunden district) has the Upper Austrian one Energy AG (EAG) began implementing its largest single investment to date on Saturday. The Kavernenkraftwerk at the foot of the Sonnstein there should be around 170 megawatts of power will generate ten full-load hours of electricity and go into trial operation in 2027. The power plant is scheduled to go online the following year.
The costs are included 451.3 million euros calculated. The financing is provided by the company itself and none comes from the federal government. But there are also discussions with the European Investment Bank, it was said. The pumped storage power plant is part of a new EAG energy system for Upper Austria. This is why a total of around four billion euros will be issued, for which the Supervisory Board gave the green light at the end of September. The strategic realignment is intended to bring the energy supplier climate neutrality by 2035.
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Together with State Governor Thomas Stelzer (ÖVP), Deputy Governor Manfred Haimbuchner (FPÖ) and Economic and Energy State Council and Energie AG Supervisory Board Chairman Markus Achleitner (ÖVP) and the mayor of Ebensee Sabine Promberger (SPÖ) gave the Energie AG board members Leonhard Schitter, Stefan Stallinger and Andreas Kolar the starting signal, as announced in a press release.
In this context, Promberger pointed out that the construction work would place additional strain on the already narrow state road to the Langbathseen. However, a continuous sidewalk will improve traffic safety. The natural landscape should remain undisturbed. “Since the power plant is largely built underground as a cavern power plant, this is guaranteed,” said the mayor.