Regional responsibility and social commitment

Energie AG is pursuing the goal of further increasing the regional value creation by implementing infrastructure projects on the local level, cooperating more closely with local specialist companies (market partners) and involving regional providers into the procurement chain. The Group is firmly committed to advancing projects that enable customers to consume and exchange decentrally produced renewable energy.

The Energie AG Groups delivers on its regional responsibility through operating sites and systems across Upper Austria. Ongoing infrastructure investments,the continuous training of skilled professionals and the creation and preservation of jobs are important contributions to increasing value generation in the regions. Energie AG is fulfilling the inter-generational contract and securing the future viability of the region through wide-ranging investment, for example in power plants to generate electricity from renewable energy sources. Energie AG’s own apprentice workshop, which marked its 80th anniversary in 2023, offers talented young people the chance to embark on careers with good prospects in their home region.

The high-performance fibre-optic internet connections provided by Energie AG offer the residents of structurally disadvantaged regions the opportunity to pursue an occupational activity (working from home). The continued expansion of the fibre-optic network and development of innovative digital services support the positive economic development of the regions in Upper Austria and contribute to increasing quality of life of the population.

Market partnerships with relevant specialist companies across Upper Austria is Energie AG's way of assuring the availability of expert advice and help with energy-related questions for customers in their respective home towns and villages, as well as motivating them to save energy through attractive funding options and joint initiatives with these local businesses.

In its supply chains, Energie AG aims at procuring from companies with a regional connection. Orders worth a total of EUR 494.8 million were placed with 2,328 suppliers in the 2022/2023 fiscal year (previous year: EUR 216.2 million with 2,281 suppliers). 83.4 % of suppliers were headquartered in Austria (previous year: 92.5%), while 16.5% were based in other European countries (previous year: 7.4%). The sharp rise in volume is due to both significant price rises and orders already included for the planned pumped-storage power plant in Ebensee.

The online platform wasserkarte.info is a good example for the support of non-profit organisations in the regional and interregional area. It shows fire brigade crews the quickest way to a hydrant.

Activities in the fields of sports, culture and social affairs

Energie AG supports cultural and sports activities on a regional level, including by sponsoring local events and sports promotion programmes (“Energie AG sports family”).

In 2000, Energie AG started to sponsor individual sportspeople in Upper Austria alongside its other sports sponsorship activities. Entitled “Energie AG sports family”, the sports sponsorship programme has gained recognition far beyond the boundaries of Upper Austria.

The emphasis of the funding is on long-term support for up-and-coming sportspeople based in Upper Austria. For these individuals and the athletes who have already made it to the top of the world, the company offers an environment for sporting and personal development. Energie AG also makes an important social contribution to aspiring sportspeople in Upper Austria by promoting sports with a low public profile.

The Energie AG sports family team currently has 16 members, including 15 active athletes led by captain Hannes Trinkl. Representing 11 different sports, the team members are some of Upper Austria’s most successful elite sportspeople. The Energie AG sports family also has two para athletes, one male and one female. The team is characterised by such qualities as togetherness, authenticity, mutual learning and shared enjoyment.

Energie AG is firmly committed to social engagement, with the Group initiating and supporting institutions and projects of significance for the economy as well as projects in the areas of science, art and education on a local level. The Company takes its function as a role model in terms of social responsibility very seriously and also fulfils this role by pro-actively taking initiative and supporting charitable organisations.

On the cultural scene, the company has for many years acted as a partner to exhibition projects organised by OÖ Landes-Kultur GmbH (formerly OÖ Kulturquartier) in Linz. Regular exhibitions are also held at the PowerTower in Linz.

The Klemens-Brosch Award in cooperation with the State Gallery in Linz, the “Talent Promotion Award” in cooperation with the University of Arts in Linz, and the “Dream Scholarship” in cooperation with OK Friends are additional ways in which the Energie AG Group supports young and talented artists.

In addition, Energie AG has been a long-standing partner of many cultural initiatives throughout Upper Austria, including the Upper Austrian Regional Exhibition, Salzkammergut Festwochen summer festival, St. Florianer Sängerknaben boys’ choir and Brucknertage festival.

As a partner of the volunteer fire brigade and the Red Cross, the Energie AG Group makes an effort to support rescue organisations with a high level of voluntary commitment.

Enhancing awareness

The Group considers the raising of an awareness for a sensible and considerate treatment of energy resources and the value of a sustainable circular economy to be one of its most important responsibilities in the area of social affairs. Energy AG is a supporter of initiatives run by youth organisations in the area of sustainability, energy and environment. For many years, Upper Austria’s scouts, the Pfadfinder, have been implementing environmental projects with the support of the Energie AG Group and the Province of Upper Austria. The yearly project contest “UmWeltdenker”, for example, elicits creative ideas in this area and implements the best of them.

In the town of Timelkam, Energie AG runs an information centre about electrical energy called the Erlebniswelt Energie Timelkam (“Timelkam Energy Experience”), which in the 2022/2023 fiscal year was visited by 3,792 interested children and parents (previous year: 1,800). Following a break of two fiscal years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, workshops for schools (attracting around 240 young people) and a Start of School Festival (attracting 1,800 visitors) resumed in the summer of 2023 near the site of the Energy Experience.

The “Energie AG at School” education programme (Energie AG macht Schule) offers kindergartens and schools classroom handouts on the topics of energy, sustainability and digitalisation.

Energie AG takes initiative in strengthening the media competency of children and adolescents in connection with digitalisation and, by means of school materials and the website www.wir-denken-an-morgen.at, familiarises them with a sensible and responsible use of new technologies and digital media. The platform is complemented by interactive quizzes, videos and instructions for practical exercises and experiments.

In addition, the Group has a selection of short books for the youngest programme participants, which cover topics relating to energy and sustainability. The eight books published so far can be ordered by private persons, schools and kindergartens free of charge. Approximately 400,000 copies of these short books are already in circulation (previous year: 390,000). This is supplemented with a workshop for kindergartens, which introduced children from the age of four to sustainability issues in a playful way.

In the Czech Republic, Energie AG maintains a partnership with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) aimed at supplying drinking water to children and families in crisis-hit regions around the world. The regions in question are impacted by prolonged drought, natural disasters or political conflicts.

Also in the Czech Republic, the DOODPADU campaign seeks to raise awareness of the need to conserve water. Citizens are educated as to how major problems can be caused by what enters the sewage system. A workbook on the subject has been published alongside online course content for schools.

Respect for the environment and a commitment to a green and efficient business model are guiding principles that underpin Energie AG’s ethos. The Energie AG Group has supported the Energy Globe environmental award for some 24 years. Since 1999, over 30,000 projects for environmental protection and climate change mitigation have been submitted in the areas of earth, water, fire, air, and youth.