RAG Austria & Andritz break ground on 12.5 MW electrolyser to scale Gampern from 2.5 to 15 MW
- Groundbreaking for a self‑financed additional 12.5 MW water electrolysis at RAG Valley Gampern, raising capacity from 2.5 MW to 15 MW.
- Objective is to store summer solar as green hydrogen for use in winter to supply electricity and heat and gradually replace natural gas.
- RAG Austria is partnering with domestic plant constructor Andritz AG for this scaling step.
- Winter 2025/26 highlighted Austria's electricity import dependency and showed gas storage and power plants maintained supply, underscoring need for integrated renewables, storage and use.
Project and scale
RAG Austria has broken ground on a self‑financed additional 12.5 MW water electrolysis unit at the RAG Valley in Gampern, Upper Austria, increasing the site's electrolysis capacity from 2.5 MW to a total of 15 MW.
Purpose and system role
The expansion is intended to make renewable energy generated in summer storable as green hydrogen so it can be available in large volumes during periods of low renewable electricity generation, particularly in winter, and used for electricity and heat production to gradually replace natural gas.
Partnership and financing
RAG Austria is financing the expansion itself and is relying on Austrian plant constructor Andritz AG as a domestic industrial partner for the scaling step.
Context and urgency
The winter of 2025/26 revealed Austria's significant electricity import dependency and showed that wind expansion, batteries and pumped storage alone could not resolve supply gaps; gas storage and power plants maintained supply, highlighting the need for an integrated energy system combining renewable generation, storage and use.
Source: RAG Austria AG
