“Can’t we see” – Blackout in Austria? Clear no from E-Control

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Wholesale prices for electricity and gas are falling and new customers can even look forward to slightly lower rates. “Still, we are still far from the prices we had two years ago,” says Alfons Haber, CEO of E-Control. The current discussion about fracking is “showing the way,” he explained in a live talk with moderator Conny Winiwarter. And he contradicts Secretary of Defense Klaudia Tanner: “A blackout is extremely unlikely.”

Austria has one of the highest delivery reliability in the EU. “We do not see any blackout scenarios”, the board of directors of the regulator E-Control clarifies. That’s why you only prepare for a power outage of a few hours – not a blackout. “We have never had such a large-scale, prolonged blackout,” Haber argues.

“Discussion about fracking is leading”
Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler recently called for a ban on fracking – and was rejected by the ÖVP. “There has been discussion about this for more than 15 years,” Haber knows all the advantages and disadvantages of the method. The subject has always had a negative connotation. “The current discussion could lead the way in reducing gas.” The energy expert is not entirely averse to nuclear energy: “You could see it as an intermediate step.”

And what comes after such intermediate steps? “Renewable energy”, emphasizes Haber. Enlargement has the highest priority. And we’re not in such a bad position: “In the electricity sector, we have 80 percent renewable energy,” says the Board of Directors.

Price explosion not only because of war
Although wholesale prices are falling, this only comes with a delay to end customers. “There is always a delay”, because of the exchanges and the suppliers. But the war is not the only reason for the rising prices: “Gas prices also rose before the war,” says the connoisseur.

Also cheaper rates for existing customers?
Good news for new customers: prices often go down again. “A good indicator, because then there will be competition in the industry again.” Haber also assumes that there may be cutbacks among existing customers: “Information is an essential point”, he refers to the consumer’s own responsibility.

You can see the entire interview with Alfons Haber in the video above. KroneLIVE can be seen from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m.

What do you think of the current power supply and a possible power outage? Comment with us!

Source: Krone

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