Austria will spend $2.5 billion on power grid construction in the next decade

Austrian grid operator APG plans to invest 2.5 billion euros in power grid construction over the next 10 years to accommodate the massive expansion of wind and solar.

The program will begin construction of a 380 kV Salzburg power line connecting the pumped storage facilities in the western Alps to the wind-rich areas on the eastern border.

APG said that the construction of 800 million euros ($905 million) of power transmission lines will begin in the fourth quarter of 2019 and is expected to last for four years.

The project will help to improve the planned grid connectivity capabilities in Germany and is currently under construction.

Last year, the Austrian energy regulator E-Control said that if the thermal power plant is shut down during the expansion of renewable energy, the power supply gap will reach 2.5 GW by 2030.

Hydropower meets nearly two-thirds of Austria's electricity needs, while electricity from Germany and the Czech Republic plays an important supporting role.