No risk of blackout in Austria this winter - environment minister

Austria is not expected to suffer electricity shortages or blackouts this winter, according to a stress test presented by the environment minister on Monday. In a "very critical scenario", Austrians could be asked to curb usage due to insufficient power supply, but a high risk of blackout was not present in any of the scenarios, the minister added.

Austria is not expected to suffer electricity shortages or blackouts this winter, according to a stress test presented by the environment minister on Monday. "The electricity stress test shows us two things: Austria has a good and secure energy supply, and we are facing a challenging winter that we can nevertheless manage well in a realistic scenario," Leonore Gewessler said.

The stress test, conducted by national grid operator APG, found that the most realistic scenario did not present a single hour of so-called load shortfall in Austria, during which supply would not be able to cover demand, Gewessler said. In a "very critical scenario", Austrians could be asked to curb usage due to insufficient power supply, but a high risk of blackout was not present in any of the scenarios, the minister added.