After construction stop

Work resumes in full swing on power plant construction

Parts of the power plant construction were suspended due to a complaint from the State Environmental Ombudsman's Office(Bild: Gerhard Schiel)

The provincial administrative court has now allowed construction to continue due to "imminent danger". Damage has already been caused by flooding. The planned completion date of mid-2025 should be met.

Since yesterday, Thursday, work on the Stegenwald power plant on the Salzach in Pongau can continue. The Provincial Administrative Court (LVwG) lifted the suspensive effect of an appeal by the Provincial Environmental Ombudsman's Office (LUA). As a reminder: At the end of August, the Administrative Court revoked the nature conservation permit for the construction due to the violation of regulations.

The LVwG has now followed an application by the two partners in the 100 million euro project, Verbund and Salzburg AG. This is not yet a substantive decision on the complaint, but the construction work can continue. As reported, the LUA filed a complaint because it had not been sufficiently determined whether the habitat of several animal species, such as the dormouse, would be affected by the power plant construction.

The floods have already caused the banks to break
However, only the nature conservation work such as gravel islands and fish migration aids were affected by the construction stop anyway. Work on the powerhouse continued unabated. Verbund therefore expects the power plant to be connected to the grid in mid-2025 as planned.

The current court decision was made due to "imminent danger". This is because the floods in September had already caused banks to break near the railroad tracks and the main road, which can now be remediated for safety and ecological reasons.