The candy coalition hasn’t even been decided yet and yet people are already asking for it. The ÖVP Governor of Lower Austria, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, and the SPÖ Governor of Burgenland, Hans Peter Doskozil, are now taking their coalition negotiators in Vienna to task and calling for a fairer distribution of electricity network tariffs.
Energy costs are rising, but financial assistance for the population, such as the brake on electricity prices, is running out. In 2025, electricity and gas prices are likely to rise, not only because of higher energy costs; the price also includes network costs and taxes and fees. The FPÖ and the Greens are therefore calling for countermeasures. The coalition negotiators ÖVP, SPÖ and NEOS are still cautious. Two monarchs have now spoken out against the “Krone”.
State leaders hold negotiators accountable
Two princes spoke about this to the “Krone”. To ensure that people in the eastern region do not quickly pay twice as much, the ÖVP Governor of Lower Austria, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, and the Governor of Burgenland, Hans Peter Doskozil, are demanding a fairer distribution from the next federal government of the electricity network tariffs. The nascent candy coalition has a duty.
“The eastern region makes a huge contribution to the expansion of renewable energy sources,” both say. This is essential for energy independence, but it also inevitably puts pressure on the electricity grid and creates a greater need for investment. In Lower Austria and Vienna, wages are rising by more than 30 percent; in Burgenland they rise by 23.6 percent above the average.
“It is absurd that the model students in the expansion of renewable energy are now being punished for their use with higher network tariffs,” criticizes Mikl-Leitner. About 800 wind turbines and 120,000 PV systems across the country currently generate about 40 percent of Austria’s renewable electricity. This has also helped Lower Austria reduce its CO₂ emissions by more than a third since 2005.
“We are so committed to promoting the expansion of renewable energy because we need to become less dependent on energy supplies from abroad and because we do not pay lip service to climate and environmental protection. Our compatriots should not be punished for the fact that Lower Austria makes an important contribution to energy independence and climate protection for the whole of Austria,” the state leader makes clear. By 2030, three billion will be invested in network expansion in Lower Austria alone. Plans that have been put forward across the country for years by State Vice President Stephan Pernkopf.
Doskozil: “It’s completely absurd”
“It is completely absurd that the network costs are not shared by everyone in solidarity,” says Doskozil. Due to the expansion of renewable energy, energy independence in Burgenland has recently increased from 50 to 62 percent. According to Doskozil, it is also wrong that the federal government now wants price dampening measures such as suspending contributions for renewable energy and reducing the electricity tax to expire at the end of the year. “These measures must continue. “Burgenland also offers its own solution for price stability with a new energy community,” says the powerful SPÖ state governor.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
