Herbert Eibensteiner, CEO of Austrian steelmaker Voestalpine, has called on the Austrian government to extend electricity price compensation until 2030 to achieve green transition targets, according to local media reports. The electricity price compensation act, which is currently limited to one year, benefits companies at risk of carbon leakage and will be granted to eligible companies through a refund of 75 percent of the indirect emission costs incurred in 2022, with the payment made in 2023.
The company has received around €50 million per year from electricity price compensation so far. However, as Voestalpine’s electricity consumption will increase significantly in the coming years due to its plans to replace blast furnaces with electric arc furnaces, the extension of the act is important for the company. Voestalpine will construct one electric arc furnace at each of its two sites, Linz and Donawitz, with a total investment of around €1.5 billion, reducing the company’s carbon emissions by up to 30 percent, as SteelOrbis previously reported.
