Verbund explores new pumped-storage project in Upper Styria

Verbund is investigating a new pumped-storage project near the Salza storage power plant in Upper Styria after plans for a facility on the Koralm were abandoned, ORF reports. Energy expert Cristof Sumereder says such plants are needed to store renewable electricity over longer periods.

Pumped-storage plants use electricity to pump water into an elevated reservoir when power from solar panels, wind turbines or hydropower is available. When electricity is needed, the water flows back through turbines to generate power.

Sumereder, from the Institute of Energy, Transport and Environmental Management at FH Joanneum, said pumped-storage facilities can store electricity for weeks or even seasonally. Battery storage, by contrast, can generally manage supply for only one or several days.

Solar power production in Austria generates surplus electricity during the summer months. Pumped storage could effectively carry that energy into the less sunny winter season. The drawback is that storage reservoirs require large areas and can significantly affect nature.

Verbund is currently examining which option would be best near the existing Salza storage power plant. The company is assessing the technical possibilities, including where an upper reservoir could be built and what volume it could hold. Geological studies are under way, along with evaluations of the project’s impact on nature and the environment.

The planned pumped-storage plant on the Koralm will not be built. The project’s approval was effectively withdrawn three years ago, and the Administrative Court has now rejected the complaints against that decision.