Austria Solar

Acquiring affordable loans for large solar thermal plants is a challenging task. On 30 January, the industry association Austria Solar organised a meeting between representatives of the banking and investment sector, engineering companies, solar companies and industrial customers for process heat. The less than a dozen attendees, many of them CEOs, gave the meticulously planned workshop its exclusive touch. According to Roger Hackstock of Austria Solar, all parties learned a lot about each other. They also agreed to work together more closely in the future.
Figure: Thommy Weiss / pixelio.de

In the Austrian province Lower Austria, the cut of direct incentives has led to an almost total collapse of the market for solar thermal systems. The industry association Austria Solar estimates that instead of 6,000 systems as in 2010, only 1,700 new systems are going to be installed in Lower Austria this year. Even worse, the oil industry has set up its own incentive programme for oil heating.
Source: Foto Wilke

Austrian flat plate collector manufacturers may smile again: Last year's decline seems to have been overcome. A quarterly anonymous survey carried out by an Austrian accounting company among 25 members of the solar thermal industry association Austria Solar (representing 75 % of the total market volume) showed an increase in sales of 22 % in the first quarter of 2011, compared to the previous weak year. The annual market statistics carried out by the Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) also show several other interesting trends, such as the one towards combi systems (see figure).
Figure: BMVIT/Austria Solar

The subsidy programme "Solar Thermal – Solar large-scale” launched by Austria Solar was one of the most successful programmes of the Austrian Climate and Energy Fund in 2010. The 38 submitted projects were twice as much as could be financed by the original budget (see www.solarthermalworld.org/node/1538). Its increase still during 2010 made it possible to ultimately finance all of the applications received. The 2011 budget now provides EUR 5 million – more than double the amount of last year.

The Austrian government seems to underestimate the number of jobs which the solar thermal sector could create over the next ten years. In the “Masterplan green jobs” published in October 2010, the Austrian Federal Ministry for Environment estimates that around 66,000 new jobs are going to be created in the renewable sector by 2020 if the share of renewable electricity and heat increases to 34 % within the next ten years.

The results have convinced the sceptics: The interest in large solar thermal systems between 100 and 2,000 m² of collector area has been enormous in Austria. 76 requests have been submitted in the framework of the incentive programme “Solar Thermal - Solar large-scale" started in June 2010. 41 applicants received consultancy by one of the participating Austrian research institutions and submitted the application documents before 15 October. The chart shows the respective application areas of the 41 proposed projects totalling 15,877 m2 of collector area.
Figure: AEE Intec

Between February and May 2010, the solar campaign “Clever people heat with the sun” (Schlaue heizen mit der Sonne) promoted solar thermal technology across all of Austria's main media channels: radio, television, newspapers and special interest magazines. The marketing measures reached a total of almost 270 million impressions (see the table below).

Austria shows that even in a generally difficult economic situation, a government can still expand its solar subsidy schemes: On 11 June, the Austrian environmental minister, Niki Berlakovich, introduced a new incentive programme for large-scale solar thermal systems. Photo: National Austrian Environmental Ministry

One campaign, three partners: Robert Kanduth (Chairman of Austria Solar), Niki Berlakovich, (heading the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management) and Ingmar Höbarth (Managing Director of the Climate and Energy Fund). Photo: Severin Dostal / Austria Solar.

In order to reach the goal of 34% renewables in 2020, Austria needs to increase significantly the share of renewable heating and cooling in its energy mix. Solar Thermal can deliver an important contribution to that goal.

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