Completion Plan – Gas Pipeline for Tyrol, “Hydropower as Backbone”

Anyone dependent on fossil fuels has felt the effects of war-related inflation. Heating costs have risen enormously. The fear that we would run out of gas has, thank God, not come true. Precautions must be taken to ensure it stays that way.

“The gas network in Tyrol is filled via Germany. For our security of supply, however, we in the West also need a guarantee that gas will still be supplied in the event of shortages and bottlenecks. The agreement between Austria and Germany is an important step here,” explains Tyrolean governor Anton Mattle of the “Krone”. But he does not want to rely only on Vienna and Berlin: “Trust is good, independence is better. That is why it is still our goal to connect Tyrol directly to the Austrian gas network!”

Main gas pipeline to Tyrol
There seems to be some movement here. In the coming months, before the summer, construction work will start on a new main gas pipeline to Tyrol in Salzburg. This must also connect Tyrol to the gas network via Austrian territory.

“The Tyrolean network already extends to the state border, we are still waiting for the connection to Salzburg. The Salzburg network will build the Tennengau section along the Tauernautobahn and close the gap in Pinzgau between Saalfelden and Hochfilzen in the autumn. Tyrol should then be connected by the end of 2024. The cost would be 20 million euros,” says Mattle.

The planning has been going on for a while, now the finalization follows. “Even though many are urging the abandonment of gas, there will still be a need for bridging energy carriers such as gas for the transition to the energy transition. The exit does not happen overnight, even though a lot is happening now,” emphasizes the Tyrolean governor.

“Double Secure”
Nevertheless, hydropower and photovoltaics remain the backbone of the Tyrolean energy supply. “Our focus is on the technology-neutral expansion of renewable energy sources with hydropower and photovoltaics as the backbone. In this way we want to become independent of imported inflation and make our contribution to protecting the climate. But until the energy transition is complete, we must do everything we can to maintain security of supply. That is why we trust to close the gap between Saalfelden and Hochfilzen. This gives us double security and ensures the supply of gas as a bridging energy source until the energy transition is complete,” concludes LH Mattle.