Households and Photovoltaic Systems in Austria

In the first part of the workshop, Tugba Atasoy presented first results from a household survey on the characteristics of Austrian prosumers and their motives and barriers to investing in photovoltaic systems. The survey results show that legal framework conditions (such as restrictions regarding the installation of photovoltaic systems in multi-family houses) and financial aspects are key determinants for the adoption of photovoltaic systems by Austrian households. The results were evaluated and validated through discussions with the stakeholders. In the second part of the workshop, Kagan Yüksel introduced the technology diffusion model, which simulates adoption pathways of photovoltaic systems in Austrian households, and presented preliminary results. Stakeholder feedback will be considered in the development of policy scenarios.

A rapid and comprehensive phase-out of fossil fuels is required to achieve the climate targets. Austria aims at covering 100 percent of its electricity demand from renewable energy sources by 2030 by increasing electricity generation from renewables by 27 TWh compared to 2020. Due to a continued electrification in all areas after 2030, a further expansion of renewable electricity will be required. The contribution of households as prosumers will be of crucial importance in the energy transition and the purchase of a photovoltaic system is a long-term remedy against electricity price increases. However, due to economic or legal restrictions, not all households can benefit equally from this technology.

FutuRes-PV is a joint project of WIFO, Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) and RWTH Aachen University. It is funded by the Climate and Energy Fund and carried out within the Austrian Climate Research Programme (ACRP). Further information on the project and the presentations from the workshop can be found on the at https://futures-pv.wifo.ac.at/.