Grid Segment

Statutory and regulatory framework in the Grid Segment

Due to the situation on the energy market, which triggered an enormous increase in the grid loss component, the regulatory authority increased the grid utilisation fees in the electricity sector by between 35.8% and 72.6% as of 1 January 2023. The Austrian National Council has therefore decided to subsidise a cost reduction in grid loss charges for procurement plants for 2023. A large part of the increase in grid loss charges was cushioned by the government subsidy and the downward trend in market prices in the meantime; tariffs were reduced accordingly as of 1 March 2023. Compared to the previous year, grid utilisation fees increased by between 5.6% and 10.3% as of 1 March 2023, with different tariffs now being applied for withdrawing and injecting parties.

The grid utilisation fees in the gas sector for consumers at grid level 3 rose by 23.5% and by 40.8% at grid level 2. These significant increases were also due to higher grid loss costs in this unit and higher upstream grid costs.

The fourth regulatory period in the gas sector began on 1 January 2023 and will run for another 5-year period. In the first half of the 2022/2023 fiscal year, one focus in the Grid Segment was the initiation of the cost determination process for the fifth electricity regulatory period. In addition to wide-ranging requirements and queries from the authorities, expert meetings were held to discuss and define the parameters for the fifth regulatory period.

Business development in the Grid Segment

In the reporting period, sales revenues in the Grid Segment amounted to EUR 238.3 million, an increase of 10.4% compared to the previous year. EBIT in the Grid Segment totalled EUR 26.6 million in the first half of 2022/2023, corresponding to a decrease of 36.5%. This was mainly driven by declining transported volumes on both the electricity and gas grids, as well as higher grid loss and upstream grid costs. These costs were only partially offset by the regulatory increase in grid utilisation fees. Besides this, depreciation in the area of electricity and gas grids, along with other expenses, also increased due to the investments made.

Electricity and gas grid as the backbone of the Upper Austrian supply infrastructure

Electricity grid distribution volume to end customers

in GWh

Compared to the same period of the previous year, the electricity grid distribution volume fell by a total of 5.7% from 4,258 GWh to 4,017 GWh in the first half of the current fiscal year. In particular, high electricity prices led to customers opting to save energy at all grid levels.

Grid operations were challenged by a number of storms in the first few months of calendar year 2023, with the electricity supply being affected by trees falling on power cables. In this situation, the 110 kV high-voltage grid once again proved to be the strong and reliable backbone of the Upper Austrian electricity supply.

In early March 2023, the new, updated Upper Austria Electricity Grid Master Plan 2032 was published. It aims to align the electricity infrastructure in Upper Austria with current and future requirements even more quickly. With respect to operations during the period under review, work continued on the expansion of the 380/110 kV Wagenham substation, while remaining work and testing and approval activities were carried out in the scope of “Alm- und Kremstal electricity supply” and “Pramtal Süd electricity supply” projects. The documentation for an environmental impact statement for the “Mühlviertel Rohrbach – Langbruck electricity supply” project was authored. In Steyr, preparatory work was started on the general renovation of the 110 kV line from Steyr East to Steyr North, and planning work for the Rottenbach substation was largely completed during the reporting period. The environmental impact assessment approval for the “Central Region Upper Austria” project was obtained in the first instance and construction work commenced.

The need to decarbonise energy consumption, and the statutory framework defined by policymakers with a view to this, had already generated a significant boost in interest in decentralised generation based on renewable energy sources in recent years. In the 2021/2022 fiscal year, interest in private photovoltaic (PV) systems skyrocketed with the onset of Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine due to the additional motivation of reliability concerns. Requests to connect PV systems to the grid multiplied compared to the previous year, with figures rising to more than 35,000 in 2022. The continually high number of grid connection requests for power infeed systems in the reporting period led to bottlenecks in the processing procedure and even in the electricity grid itself despite measures having been introduced in the previous year. Thanks to further automation and short-term support, it proved possible to process the large number of applications. Additional measures, up to and including considerations for structural changes, are being prepared in order to continue to ensure supply quality for grid customers with top priority.

Gas grid distribution volume to end customers

in GWh

The gas grid distribution volume fell to 9,699 GWh in the reporting period; this is a drop of 19.9% compared to the same period in the previous year (12,116 GWh). The decrease in volumes affected both the industrial and residential sectors and was influenced by very high gas prices and a relatively warm winter.

In addition to maintenance measures, including the remediation of shortfalls in coverage and repairs of insulation defects in the high-pressure gas pipelines, essential and extensive conversion work also started at several reduction stations. Rerouting and route planning of four high-pressure gas pipelines for rerouting required for third-party projects commenced during the reporting period.