Austria could get rid of Russian gas by 2027 • NEWS.AT
Austria could manage without Russian gas from 2027. To do this, however, gas consumption would have to be reduced by a quarter by then, alternative imports temporarily tripled and the production of biogas and green hydrogen massively expanded, according to a study by the Energy Agency commissioned by the Ministry of the Environment. Own production of natural gas would have to remain unchanged. By 2030, the Energy Agency even assumes that gas consumption will fall by a third.
Climate Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) will base the government’s work on this analysis. “We have to get out of Russian natural gas. That’s the only right answer to the Russian attack on Ukraine. We can’t overlook the fact that this exit won’t happen overnight,” said Gewessler. But “every gas boiler that we exchange makes us more independent”. Austria should increase its own production with biogas and green hydrogen, but also develop new supplier countries – from Norway to Qatar. This means that Austria participates to a large extent in the EU’s joint gas purchasing.
Franz Angerer, Managing Director of the Austrian Energy Agency, also points out that the dependency on Russia, which has grown over decades, can neither be changed in the short term. However, “a national and international effort” would make it possible by 2027. At the same time, he points out that the multiplication of natural gas prices will lead to slumps in gas consumption in many sectors. “A precise calculation of the reduction in consumption is not serious due to this unprecedented price explosion,” he restricts. The Energy Agency assumes that energy prices will remain high in the medium term and that there will therefore be further incentives to reduce gas consumption and switch to renewable energy sources.
Austria currently needs 89 terawatt hours (TWh) of gas per year. Of this, 63 TWh is imported from Russia, 10 TWh is subsidized in Austria, and the rest (16 TWh) is imported from other countries.
The Energy Agency’s scenario envisages that consumption in Austria will fall by a quarter to 67 TWh by 2027. Gas imports from countries other than Russia are said to have tripled to 50 TWh in the meantime, and in addition to the 10 TWh of gas production, 7 TWh could come from “Austrian” green gas. Natural gas imports from Russia should be superfluous in five years.
According to calculations by the Energy Agency, domestic gas consumption would continue to fall by 2030, to just 60 TWh. The production of biomethane (10 TWh) and green hydrogen (4 TWh) would continue to increase, so imports from other countries could fall to 36 TWh. After Austria becomes climate-neutral by 2040, the energy agency reminds that imports of renewable gases, such as green hydrogen, should be implemented as quickly as possible.
The greatest potential for increasing the demand for gas lies in the phase-out of gas for space heating and hot water. That could reduce consumption by 9 TWh by 2030, according to the Energy Agency. Half of the current 1.2 million gas heaters could be replaced by 2030, mainly by heat pumps, district heating and biomass heating. Accelerated building renovation should save another 1 to 2 TWh of gas.
In industry and commerce, 6 TWh of gas could be replaced in the area of process heat. Efficiency gains in industry could save another 4 TWh. The substitution of natural gas power plants with electricity from renewable sources could save 4 TWh, the use of geothermal energy 2 TWh, the more efficient use of biomass power plants with combined heat and power generation and the switch to more efficient devices each one TWh.
The Energy Agency’s analysis does not specify additional gas imports. In general, the quantities imported from Norway “should be increased or supplemented by new import routes”. Liquid gas (LNG) should also be considered – and could come to Austria via terminals in Italy and the Trans-Austria gas pipeline. Thanks to its strong agriculture, Ukraine could become a biogas exporter in the future. And for the import of 14 TWh of hydrogen, “by 2030, the corresponding strategic cooperation with potential export countries must be established and a hydrogen-friendly transport infrastructure must be created,” says the analysis.