Matrei-Raneburg pumped storage power plant

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The Matrei-Raneburg pumped storage power plant is a hydropower plant planned by TIWAG in East Tyrol (municipality of Matrei in Osttirol ), Austria . Because of this need, strong impact on nature in the surroundings of the Hohe Tauern National Park and the damming of the Tauern creek behind a 90 meter high dam , the project has generated since it was unveiled with strong opposition in parts of the population and has become a major political issue of the district Lienz become .

history

With the publication of its options report on December 9, 2004, TIWAG presented the Matrei-Raneburg pumped storage power plant project to a broader public as option 15 for the first time . Although the municipal council of Matrei had already rejected the Raneburg power plant by a majority (with 9: 8 votes) on August 3, 2005, the Tyrolean state government initiated an in-depth study for this project and three other of the 16 options presented on August 15, 2005. The rejection by the local council was only possible because the ÖVP -near local council faction did not vote unanimously for Matrei . While mayor and ÖVP district chairman Andreas Köll campaigned strongly for the project, the opposition voted against the building project together with vice mayor Johann Steiner and another local council from the majority faction.

As a result, the non-partisan citizens' initiative Lebensraum Matrei was founded on August 28, 2005 , in which, in addition to several local councils, the member of the state parliament Sepp Brugger ( Greens ), Vice Mayor Steiner and the chairmen of the local farmers, the Alpine Association and the Economic Association participate. The organization of the resistance began together with the Wasser Osttirol network . While the Greens in the district spoke out against the project from the start and the district farmers and the FPÖ soon joined in the rejection, the issue split the SPÖ for a long time. Only on October 3rd did the East Tyrolean SPÖ say no to the power plant project. The SPÖ at the state level, which is in a coalition with the ÖVP, continues to advocate the construction of a power plant.

In mid-February 2006, TIWAG presented a slightly modified project. This provides for a relocation of the dam by 270 m into the valley and a relocation of the compensation basin to the entrance of the Virgental . In addition, TIWAG is also planning the addition of the Frosnitzbach in this variant . As a result of these changes, the partial relocation of Felbertauernstrasse and the TAL pipeline is no longer necessary. The rejection front of the citizens' initiatives remained, however. By mid-April 2006, the citizens' initiative Lebensraum Matrei had collected 4,227 signatures against the power plant project and 15 of the 16 landowners affected also voted against negotiations with TIWAG about a sale in April. The state government and TIWAG announced in autumn 2006 that they would be interested in the implementation of the project in the medium to long term, but the corresponding location should be revised and possible alternatives found.

Project

The options report provides for damming the Tauernbach with a catchment area of ​​around 100 km² above the Raneburg fraction by using a valley flattening with the help of an approximately 90-meter-high dam. The resulting annual storage would hold 20 million m³ and guarantee a nominal output of 100 MW or a working capacity of 150 GWh / a (excluding pump circulation). A barrage of the Isel near Matrei, which has been under discussion for a long time and which would be made possible or upgraded by the pumped storage power plant, is closely related to this .

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