Small Hydro Power Programme - O.Ö. Energiesparverband, Upper Austria

Summary
A new support programme launched recently in Upper Austria supports green electricity project implementation. One part of the programme is dedicated to support small hydro power plants, especially in their renovation efforts. There are about 526 small hydro power plants in operation in the region of Upper Austria, many of them with significant renovation potential. In the framework of the OPET RES-e project, a number of information activities to promote the programme were carried out by O.Ö. Energiesparverband. Additionally, plant owners can get free energy advice by O.Ö. Energiesparverband. So far, more than 300 of the 526 plant owners have applied for an ‘energy advice session' and the 64 investment projects have been completed, leading to an average increase in the electricity output of 15%.

End-user area	Financial instruments
Target audience	Citizens Property owners
Technical scope	Hydro power

Context
Upper Austria is a sustainable energy region with a share of 33% renewable energy sources of the total primary energy consumption. In line with the European objectives to increase the share of green electricity, a new support programme for electricity from renewables was launched in March 2003. The programme "ÖKOP" (eco-electricity programme) supports new installations for electricity generation using photovoltaics, wind, biogas, biomass and the refurbishment of small hydro power plants.

In Upper Austria, there are more than 520 small hydro power plants in operation. At the beginning of the project, a new funding scheme came into operation offering attractive conditions for the retrofitting of these plants ("Bundesökostrom-Verordnung", a national feed-in tariff and an investment subsidy by the region of Upper Austria) - all geared at triggering investments to increase the electricity production of these installations. Additionally, small hydro power plants can receive up to 50,000€ for retrofitting the plant and O.Ö. Energiesparverband offers free advice for plant owners who want to refurbish their installations.

The challenge to be overcome was that many of the plant owners are not working in the energy field but very often are farmers, companies active in another field or even private persons who happen to have inherited the land on which a hydro power plant is located. These groups usually need significantly more information and technical support than energy companies and will certainly not automatically act just because there is an interesting financial framework available.

The aim of the OPET RES-e activities was therefore to carry out targeted information activities which would help to motivate small hydro power plant owners to renovate their plants. As a first step - in partnership with several relevant associations - an information event ("Info-Veranstaltung Kleinwasserkraftwerke") was organised which attracted around 280 participants. An information leaflet was prepared and mailed to all owners of power plants and where necessary, technical advice was also given to plant owners. Since then, 60 small hydro power plants were renovated achieving, in general, 15% more electricity output.

Objectives
It is expected that the new programme, which is managed by O.Ö. Energiesparverband together with government authorities, will bring another boost for renewable energy to the region. Especially for small hydro power plants, the potential for renovation is very high in the region. Additionally, the framework for renovating plants is now very positive. The nation-wide granted feed-in tariff is increased, if the electricity output of small hydro power plants is raised in connection with renovation by at least 15%. The support programme aims at harnessing the existing renovation potential and thereby increasing the electricity output.

Process
The implementation of the programme comprised the following activities:

Promotion activities: In order to make the programme known, a number of promotion activities were carried out, including a seminar, printing of an information leaflet, information via the internet. The seminar held to launch the programme attracted very high interest and was attended by 280 participants.

Investment subsidy: For the renovation of small hydro power plants, an investment subsidy of 25% of the investment costs up to 50,000 € is granted by the regional government.

Energy advice: Plant owners who want to renovate their small hydro power plants can get free energy advice (2 days). The energy advice sessions are organized by O.Ö. Energiesparverband. So far, more than 300 of the total of 526 plant owners applied for such advice sessions.

Actions
- Initializing projects
- Seminar
- Webpage
- Other: Consulting, investment subsidy

Financial resources and partners
The support programme is financed by the regional government and implemented by O.Ö. Energiesparverband together with administration authorities. So far about 6.3 mio € investment was triggered by the renovation programme and the renovation of 64 plants has been completed. About 1.01 mio € were invested by the regional government.

Results
In total there are 526 small hydro power plants in operation in Upper Austria. More than 300 of these plant owners have already applied for an energy advice session to support their renovation efforts. 64 renovation projects have already been completed triggering 6.3 mio € investment. In most of these cases the electricity output of the plants were raised by at least 15%.

Moreover the intensive information and awareness activities raised the overall understanding and awareness for sustainable energy use. The high number of participants at the seminar to launch the programme, clearly demonstrates the great interest in renewable energy sources.

A recent opinion poll showed that 89% of the Upper Austrian citizens consider small hydro power as a very likeable energy source and 53% think that small hydro power will play an important role in the future energy supply.

Lessons learned and replication potential
Positive aspects:

• high level of interest from the target group - it was possible to interest and motivate plant owners to invest in renovation
• personal contact via the individual energy advice sessions provided well targeted support

Success factors:

• combination of promotion, individual energy advice and financial support
• with individual advice sessions you can really meet the needs of the target group
• well targeted information measures – ideally surrounded by a positive framework (e.g. a support programme, an increased feed-in tariff) – can reach and motivate a great number of people