Solar thermal in Austria - Exemplary Implementation - EPU-NTUA, Greece
Summary
A total of 11,7 million square meters of collector area were installed in Europe at the end of 2000. In this context, it is remarkable that of this collector area 62% were installed in just three countries; Germany, Greece and Austria. If one relates the collector area to the area installed per thousand inhabitants in the year 2000, with 18.9 m2, Austria takes the lead over Greece and Germany.
This case study was part of the results of "Increasingly promotion and market penetration of EU energy-efficient measures in China" work package of OPET CHP/DH project. Partners were six oganizations in the OPET network: EPU-NTUA (Greece), ZERI (China), EREC, CSFTA, ISNOVA (Italy) and ENEA (Italy).
Activities included the development of case studies to further the dissemination of EU energy information and increase the awareness of OPET around China. The main result was the generation of awareness among Chinese energy actors concerning EU energy policies, energy efficient and renewable energy technologies, products and management mechanisms.
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| End-user area | Sustainable communities |
| Target audience | Households |
| Technical scope | Solar energy |
Context
EPU-NTUA, in cooperation with the above mentioned organizations, carried out the work package "Increasingly promotion and market penetration of EU energy-efficient measures in China" of the OPET CHP/DHC project. The project duration was 14 months, from April 2003 to May 2004. The expansion of the Austrian Solar market began in 1983, when the first self-assembly group for solar water heaters was organized in Syria. Since this idea has developed into a movement active in the whole of Austria. Since 1993, commercial built solar systems hold by far the biggest share in the solar market. Additionally, the market share of "combined plants" (warm water and space heating) in the collector area installed already equated 50% in 1998. In this field, Austria has without a doubt assumed a pioneering role.
Although the Austrian domestic solar thermal market at the end of the 1990s was stagnant, it remained leader in terms of the overall installed solar area (not per-head-installations).
The energy policy in Austria is jointly implemented by both the Federal and the nine Bundeslander (Federal States) Governments. For this reason, the present case study will be mainly focused upon the state of Upper Austria, being one of Europe 's leading regions concerning the use of RES and as one of the most successful regions to encourage solar thermal uptake at the regional level.
By 2000, Upper Austria had about 0.4 m2 installed solar collectors per inhabitant and more than 500,000 m2 of thermal solar collectors installed, mainly in domestic buildings. Solar energy, especially solar thermal, was always considered as a strategic sector in Upper Austria because of its high visibility and its strong industrial base.
Objectives
The main objectives of the action were:
Process
The tasks involved the following activities:
Energy efficiency and renewable energy are the cornerstones of the Upper Austrian Energy Policy. This combined approach can explain its success. In 1993, Upper Austria defined an Action Plan to reduce fossil fuel consumption by increasing both energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy. Under this framework, a target was set to reach an installed surface area of solar thermal collectors of 300,000 m2 until 2000, an objective which was later increased to 500,000 m2 (as the original goal has already been achieved in the mid-nineties). In Austria, the scope of such energy plans is larger than in most other EU countries due to the federal structure of the Republic. Continuing the strategy of the successful first energy plan (1994-1999) into the 21 st Century, the Upper Austrian Government unanimously passed the "Energy 21" strategy. The "Energy 21" strategy focuses on the development of a well-targeted action plan and sets a further target of reaching 1,000,000 m2 solar thermal collectors by 2010 - equivalent to nearly 1 m2 per inhabitant.
Upper Austria has, in the last few years, set up a number of legal and regulatory measures in order to remove existing administrative barriers and to provide a better framework for investments in energy efficiency and RES.
In Austria, subsidy schemes have been set up by the Federal States, as well as by local authorities, to promote the use of solar energy. However, the regional government grants financial support for solar collectors installed in the domestic sector. For solar collectors installed in commercial buildings, the support is granted by the national government.
The regional government increased the subsidy for solar collectors in 2001 (both for small and large-scale installations). A 10 m2 solar collector installation, for example, receives 1.850 € (which is about 25% of the total costs), a similar support is provided for solar installations in apartment blocks. In Upper Austria several other financial measures have been taken.
One of the most important measures of the Austrian Government in R&D is the creation of the "Austria Solar Innovation Center" (ASIC). ASIC is focused on research and development in the field of solar technology.
Actions
- Market Analysis
- Web Page
- Articles - Brochures
Financial resources and partners
Partners in this project and their roles were
| European Commission | |
| ZERI, EREC, CSFTA, EPU-NTUA, ISNOVA, ENEA |
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| Total Cost | € 10,000 |
Results
The project achieved its objectives:
The results of the project are laid down in four main deliverables, which are available on the project website www.opet-chp.net:
Lessons learned and replication potential
Across Europe, there are several different applications of solar systems. In this sense, it is common that there are different approaches to promote solar thermal, depending on geographical climate, standards of living, public concern, and most importantly on government and regional support. Therefore, there is no one recipe for promoting the solar thermal industry. If we look more closely at the major market of solar thermal in Upper Austria, we will see that the major factor for its success was the combination of actions.
From the Upper Austrian experience, we can also conclude that the promotion of RES at regional level has many advantages, for instance:
It is also important to emphasize that a long-standing cultural tradition of respect to the environment has been a significant success factor in Upper Austria. In this Region, the homeowner is able to play an active role in environmental matters with a solar system.
Contact for more information
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