While the fossil resources are disputed, Austria has – as has since been leaked – huge gas and oil reserves for long-term crisis management.
About a million tons of crude oil – equivalent to about ten percent of domestic demand – lies dormant in the ground north of Vienna and elsewhere. Energy experts therefore refer to the region in question with a wink as ‘Texas in the Weinviertel’. According to studies by the Federal Geological Institute, Upper Austria and parts of Salzburg are also real treasure troves of these fossils.
Gigantic natural gas reserves
The studies by OMV and RAG (the largest gas storage and thus energy storage company in Austria), which are now very topical, also document our gigantic natural gas reserves – namely 1.5 billion cubic meters! These could cover 15 percent of the raw material – which is all the more urgently needed in view of the war in Ukraine.
That is precisely why a red-white-red feasibility study and a master plan are needed. Stephan Pernkopf (ÖVP) of the Lower Austrian Energy Province takes on the duty on this point, both the undisputed OMV boss Alfred Stern and the Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens)!
‘I fear a shortage of diesel fuel’
He also points to the impending acute situation at the petrol pumps: “I fear a shortage of diesel fuel. We need to prepare a contingency plan, both for the short and the long term.” Pernkopf emphasizes that he does not want to go back to the fossil era: “It is about bridging the gap until we have enough alternatives, such as biogas from leftover food or fertilizer.”
Meanwhile, more and more massive criticism is being leveled at OMV’s course because it is no longer concentrating on its core business, the energy supply of Austria, but is mutating into a pure plastics group. A change of course is urgently needed in view of the crisis.
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.
