36 Brigitte Wolkinger et al.
on future international co- operation and developments, which are uncertain
and bear risks.
First of all, there is no integrated climate and energy strategy in Austria with
clear milestones and measures. An additional barrier for transition is the lack of
a roadmap for hydrogen, which would be instrumental for solving the need for
storage and reliable supply. This leads to uncertainty due to lack of liability,
planning security, commitment on a clear target, and the timing of implementation of technologies. In Austria, responsibilities for one specific topic are spread
over different levels of authorities (local, regional, and national) and therefore
co- ordinated legislation is often blocked by differing interests.
Furthermore, the national transition depends on future international cooperation and developments. One important indicator for planning further
climate mitigation projects is the development of a CO 2 price, which is currently uncertain, especially for governments of single EU member states since
the design of the EU ETS (Emissions Trading Scheme) is ruled at the EU level.
When the regulatory framework for a transition is missing or even counterproductive, a transition will not be initiated; for the private sector in particular,
planning security is a prerequisite for financing investments. For instance, regulations for the use of decentralised electricity are unclear, as is stability for
reinvestment in renewable energy sources (RES) and legal regulations within
the clean power law. Various stakeholders stress that phase- out laws for fossilfuel-based energy technologies are missing, and long approval procedures and
time lags for expansion projects (e.g. hydropower), due to concerns around
nature protection, are seen as barriers for fast transition by the energy sector.
Lack of international co- operation can bear the risk of an industry resettling
towards regions with a less restrictive climate policy. A switch to new technologies in the European iron and steel industry will be influenced by either
increased tariffs or cheap gas imports, making it less competitive to switch from
conventional blast furnace routes to (currently more expensive) hydrogen- based
routes. However, for the leading steel company in Austria, two- thirds of its
revenue from operations in the USA (€1.2 billion in 2017) is generated as a
local manufacturer in the USA itself (Voestalpine AG, 2018). Clear regulations
and financial incentives from European energy policy would be necessary to
switch to new technologies in the iron and steel sector, thereby increasing the
value for the products.
Cluster 3: Environment
The environment cluster mainly sees occurrence of consequential risks. Due to
the volatility of renewable energy, storage is increasingly important. This leads
to increasing demand for resources and, inevitably, environmental consequences
during extraction or disposal (e.g. for lithium which is used in batteries for
storage of electricity). The magnitude and importance of this risk was disputed
between energy producing utilities and NGOs. When transition pathways
include CCS technology to be able to reach the climate targets, respective
on future international co- operation and developments, which are uncertain
and bear risks.
First of all, there is no integrated climate and energy strategy in Austria with
clear milestones and measures. An additional barrier for transition is the lack of
a roadmap for hydrogen, which would be instrumental for solving the need for
storage and reliable supply. This leads to uncertainty due to lack of liability,
planning security, commitment on a clear target, and the timing of implementation of technologies. In Austria, responsibilities for one specific topic are spread
over different levels of authorities (local, regional, and national) and therefore
co- ordinated legislation is often blocked by differing interests.
Furthermore, the national transition depends on future international cooperation and developments. One important indicator for planning further
climate mitigation projects is the development of a CO 2 price, which is currently uncertain, especially for governments of single EU member states since
the design of the EU ETS (Emissions Trading Scheme) is ruled at the EU level.
When the regulatory framework for a transition is missing or even counterproductive, a transition will not be initiated; for the private sector in particular,
planning security is a prerequisite for financing investments. For instance, regulations for the use of decentralised electricity are unclear, as is stability for
reinvestment in renewable energy sources (RES) and legal regulations within
the clean power law. Various stakeholders stress that phase- out laws for fossilfuel-based energy technologies are missing, and long approval procedures and
time lags for expansion projects (e.g. hydropower), due to concerns around
nature protection, are seen as barriers for fast transition by the energy sector.
Lack of international co- operation can bear the risk of an industry resettling
towards regions with a less restrictive climate policy. A switch to new technologies in the European iron and steel industry will be influenced by either
increased tariffs or cheap gas imports, making it less competitive to switch from
conventional blast furnace routes to (currently more expensive) hydrogen- based
routes. However, for the leading steel company in Austria, two- thirds of its
revenue from operations in the USA (€1.2 billion in 2017) is generated as a
local manufacturer in the USA itself (Voestalpine AG, 2018). Clear regulations
and financial incentives from European energy policy would be necessary to
switch to new technologies in the iron and steel sector, thereby increasing the
value for the products.
Cluster 3: Environment
The environment cluster mainly sees occurrence of consequential risks. Due to
the volatility of renewable energy, storage is increasingly important. This leads
to increasing demand for resources and, inevitably, environmental consequences
during extraction or disposal (e.g. for lithium which is used in batteries for
storage of electricity). The magnitude and importance of this risk was disputed
between energy producing utilities and NGOs. When transition pathways
include CCS technology to be able to reach the climate targets, respective