Why is the cable car industry is lagging behind in the expansion of wind power?
At the foot of the Speikkogel, at 1,710 meters above sea level, there is a real rarity: a wind turbine with a hub height of 65 meters. Since 2011, it has been supplying renewable energy for lifts, lighting and huts in the Styrian ski resort of Salzstiegl. A second wind turbine stood here from 2007 to 2018 until it had to be dismantled due to technical difficulties. “When I started, I asked myself: am I stupid or is it the other ski resorts?” So says Friedrich Kaltenegger, the former Salzstiegl operator who had the wind turbines erected. Why is there still only one wind turbine in all of Austria’s 437 ski resorts?
Lack of will?
“Installing wind turbines in difficult terrain can be challenging and the potential impact on the environment must be taken into account,” writes the ropeway industry association. The wind has to reach minimum speeds and numerous requirements have to be met. Then there is transportation. Rotor blades of a turbine that delivers up to three megawatts could be around 45 meters long and would have to be transported on special equipment over bridges and bottlenecks, for example.
Martin Jaksch-Fliegenschnee from IG Windkraft primarily identifies a lack of political will as the reason why there are no wind turbines in ski resorts. “In western Austria,” he says, “the expansion of wind energy was politically prevented for a long time.” Not a single zone has been designated in the Alps of Lower Austria. There, attempts to use wind power in ski resorts were turned down by the provincial government.
Some people in the industry were interested. Stefan Mangott was in the Swiss ski resort of Andermatt-Zedrun in January 2019. He saw three wind turbines there. “At the time, I thought to myself: Why can’t that be done in Tyrol? But that was still a no-go for the provincial government. ” According to the Managing Director of Seilbahn Kompardell GmbH in Serfaus, Tyrol.
The wind has changed in recent years. “When the state government said it was possible, I noticed among my colleagues that many were looking at the possibilities,” says Mangott.
Difficult delivery
A turning point in the west was in September 2022. Then cable car association chairman Franz Hörl announced that he wanted to examine the construction of three turbines. For the Zillertal Arena in Gerlos, Tyrol. According to Mangott, the announcement probably prompted many in the industry to take a look at wind power. Even if the project was not implemented. But why?
Tunnels, hairpin bends and crossing power lines would have made it impossible to deliver the individual parts of the large 250 kW turbines. The wind measurements – an average of 4.35 meters per second in winter – would also not allow for economically sustainable operation, writes David Kammerlander, Managing Director of the Zillertal Arena, when asked.
Wind power for lifts
In Zell am See, Hannes Mayer is hoping for more favorable measurement data. The Schmittenhöhebahn lift mainly feeds in electricity generated by photovoltaic panels in summer, explains its technical manager. However, most of the energy is naturally needed in winter. “That’s when the lifts and snowmaking systems are running. You have to look for alternatives to operate them. And one of the best is certainly wind power,” says Mayer.
That’s why they are looking into the possibility of erecting a wind turbine north-east of the Sonnkogelbahn lift at around 1,800 meters above sea level. The land belongs to Schmittenhöhebahn AG. It is easily accessible via forest roads and is sufficiently far away from the slopes. Employees of a commissioned planning office have been measuring the wind speeds here since fall 2023.
They need to reach an annual average of at least five meters per second for the wind turbine to pay off. The hub should not be higher than 60 meters, even if height means profitability in wind power. Because, says Mayer: “We try to consider the landscape.”
Wind measurements in the ski area
Around 20 kilometers further west, a small step has been taken. From 2018 to 2020, the project partners Salzburg AG and Hinterglemmer Bergbahnen carried out wind measurements near the Hochalm. The site is located in the ski area and is part of Salzburg’s wind power development program. Whether and which plant will be built and who will operate it and use the electricity has not yet been decided. Various options are currently being examined and will be evaluated in spring 2024, according to the project partners.
According to information from the cable car association, the Venet mountain railroads in Zams, Tyrol, are also looking into a location. An inquiry to the ski resort remained unanswered.
There is still a lot of potential in Tyrolean ski resorts. A potential study commissioned by the state cites up to 180 gigawatt hours of technical and economic wind energy potential. This would result in up to 23 turbines that could supply up to 70 megawatts of energy. This could be used to operate gondolas, heat huts or light up toboggan runs.
“In most cases,” write the authors, “a large proportion of the electricity generated is consumed directly by the cable car companies themselves.” This is also true for the Salzstiegl. Half of the 1,500 MWh of energy required by the area comes directly from its own wind power.
Public opinion is changing
“People used to say: energy is so cheap. Why burden the landscape with a wind turbine? Today, alternative energy generation is a huge topic in the cable car industry,” says Hannes Mayer from the Schmittenhöhebahn. The energy crisis has shaken many operators awake. Installing wind turbines is a long-term strategy to become less dependent on fluctuating electricity costs.
Public opinion has also changed. Friedrich Kaltenegger knows from many years of experience at Salzstiegl: “As long as the wind turbines are turning, it’s not a problem for people.” When the first wind turbine was built in a ski resort, guests in Zell am See were also asked about their attitudes. Back then, the issue was viewed negatively. Today, a wind turbine signals: “Look, we generate our own energy,” says Mayer. “Many of our guests are from Germany – especially in the north, a wind farm is nothing out of the ordinary there.”
“The guests understand that. But I think there would have been a certain outcry among the population,” believes Mangott, Managing Director of Seilbahnen-Kompardell. He is referring to a project that was not implemented. In winter 2023, two consulting firms for sustainable energy were commissioned to assess the potential in Serfaus. They identified three locations, which were, however, close to the slopes.
Ten years to build a wind turbine
Ten years to build a wind turbine
This is a problem, as water could freeze on the rotor blades and ice could fall down. The consultants suggested models with a hub height of 120 meters – as only these could be equipped with rotor blade heating. “That was the point at which we said it didn’t make sense. Because the distance to ski slopes would have to be the hub height plus half the rotor blade diameter – and that brings us to distances of 150 meters,” says Mangott.
Mayer is more confident in Zell am See. The wind measurements there will be completed in early summer 2024. If they are positive, the approval process could start in late summer 2025. The rotor blades could be turning on the Schmittenhöhe by 2030.
“If nothing changes politically, it could take more than ten years to erect a wind turbine,” says Jaksch-Fliegenschnee from IG Windraft. When the wind turbines on the Salzstiegl were built, an EIA submission was 30 pages thick. The document now has over 300 pages and requires intensive surveys; the type of turbine must be approved down to the last screw. “Sometimes you start a procedure and after five years the type of plant no longer exists – then you have to start a re-approval process, which takes time again.”
A simple measure to simplify this would be to approve a kind of shell, “which includes maximum noise levels that must not be exceeded,” says Jaksch-Fliegenschnee. In order to drive forward the expansion of wind power in ski resorts, he calls for permits to be speeded up, more staff at the licensing authorities in the federal states as well as political targets and expansion obligations.
The elevator becomes a power station
Ibrahim Sagerer-Foric chooses a different approach. “The highlight of our power plants is that they are not subject to zoning or building regulations, but only to the Cable Car Act,” says the Managing Director of the start-up Bergwind Energy. The company plans to install modular small wind turbines on the cables of existing lifts from February to November.
An element consists of a hanger, adapter and a commercially available wind turbine, which is designed to deliver two or five kilowatts, depending on the model. At an annual wind speed of 6.8 meters per second, a two-kilowatt turbine could deliver up to 4,000 kilowatt hours per year, Sagerer-Foric calculates.
Cable car Authority
He wants to work with the highest cable car authority, with whom good talks are already underway, to ensure that the approval process proceeds quickly. In winter, the small wind turbines would have to make way for gondolas and chairs – although this is when ski resorts need the most energy. Sagerer-Foric believes that interest from the industry is nevertheless high. Many area operators would rather have a 50 kW system sooner, than a 500 kW system in 15 years’ time. In addition, according to the founder, many ski resorts are extending the season. The small wind turbines could supply electricity for e-bikes or heating pools. In March of this year, pilot turbines are to be installed in five areas.
The lone wind turbine at the foot of the Speikkogel could also have a neighbor next year at the latest. The current operators want to erect another wind turbine with a hub height of 85 meters. The permits have been granted. Friedrich Kaltenegger, who initiated the construction of the first wind turbines in an Austrian ski resort, says today that he still doesn’t know whether he was the fool or the others were. But he is sure of one thing: he would do it again. (Laura Anninger, 3.3.2024)
Translated from the German.
Source: Der Standard
Images: Pixabay – Image by Pfüderi from Pixabay Image by Lukas Bieri from Pixabay