Kaunertal Expansion Project
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Official Assessment TIWAG – Tiroler Wasserkraft AG Kaunertal Expansion Project Austria Project Stage: Preparation Assessment Date: 29/08/2016 to 05/09/2016 Final Report Date: 19/06/2017 Client: TIWAG – Tiroler Wasserkraft AG Lead Assessor: Dr Helen Locher, independent consultant Co‐assessors: Dr Joerg Hartmann, independent consultant; Aida Khalil, International Hydropower Association; Doug Smith, International Hydropower Association; Margaret Trias (trainee assessor), Golder Associates Project size: 1015 MW Cover page photo: Gepatsch Reservoir, Kaunertal Hydropower Project Acronyms Acronym Full Text BDA Bundesdenkmalamt, i.e. Federal Monuments Office or National Heritage Agency CAPEX Capital Expenditure CBA Cost‐Benefit Analysis CEO Chief Executive Officer CO2 Carbon Dioxide CS Construction Site DCF Discounted Cash Flow EC European Commission EHS Environmental Health and Safety EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EIS Environmental Impact Statement EMS Environmental Management System ENSTO‐E European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity E&SC Erosion and Sediment Control EU European Union FSL Full Supply Level GDP Gross Domestic Product GKI Gemeinschaftskraftwerk Inn GRI Global Reporting Initiative GWh Giga Watt Hour ha hectares HGV Heavy Goods Vehicles HPP Hydropower Project ICOLD International Commission on Large Dams ICS Internal Control System IHA International Hydropower Association IRR Internal Rate of Return ISO International Standards Organisation IT Information Technology IWRM Integrated Water Resources Management KPI Key Performance Indicator kV Kilo Volt KXP Kaunertal Expansion Project masl Metres above sea level Kaunertal Expansion Project, Austria www.hydrosustainability.org | i MIRR Modified Internal Rate of Return MW Mega Watt MWh Mega Watt Hour MOL Minimum Operating Level MVA Mega Volt Amp NGO Non‐Government Organisation NWMP National Water Management Plan OECD Organisation for Economic Co‐operation and Development OH&S Occupational Health and Safety OPEX Operational Expenditure PCI Project of Common Interest PSHP Pump Storage Hydropower Project R2C Risk‐2‐Chance SBK Staubeckenkommission, i.e. Austrian Commission on Reservoirs and Dams SEA Strategic Environmental Assessment SME Small‐Medium Enterprise SPC Single Point of Contact STD Sexually Transmitted Disease TBM Tunnel Boring Machine tCO2 Tonnes Carbon Dioxide TIGAS Erdgas Tirol GmbH TINETZ Tiroler Netze GmbH TIWAG Tiroler Wasserkraft AG TSS Total Suspended Solids TV Talsperrenverantwortliche, i.e. TIWAG executive dam safety engineers UN United Nations WACC Weighted Average Cost of Capital WFD Water Framework Directive WHO World Health Organisation WWF World Wide Fund for Nature WWTP Wastewater Treatment Plan ZAMG Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik, the Austrian Organisation for Meteorology and Geodynamics Kaunertal Expansion Project, Austria www.hydrosustainability.org | ii Table of Contents Acronyms ..................................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents ...................................................................................................................... iii Executive Summary ................................................................................................................... iv Sustainability Profile .................................................................................................................. vi Table of Significant Gaps ...........................................................................................................vii Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 1 Communications and Consultation (P‐1) .......................................................................... 12 2 Governance (P‐2) .............................................................................................................. 20 3 Demonstrated Need and Strategic Fit (P‐3) ...................................................................... 30 4 Siting and Design (P‐4) ...................................................................................................... 38 5 Environmental and Social Impact Assessment and Management (P‐5) ........................... 45 6 Integrated Project Management (P‐6) .............................................................................. 53 7 Hydrological Resource (P‐7) .............................................................................................. 61 8 Infrastructure Safety (P‐8) ................................................................................................ 67 9 Financial Viability (P‐9) ...................................................................................................... 74 10 Project Benefits (P‐10) ...................................................................................................... 81 11 Economic Viability (P‐11) .................................................................................................. 87 12 Procurement (P‐12) .......................................................................................................... 92 13 Project‐Affected Communities and Livelihoods (P‐13) ..................................................... 99 14 Resettlement (P‐14) ........................................................................................................ 106 15 Indigenous Peoples (P‐15) .............................................................................................. 107 16 Labour and Working Conditions (P‐16) ........................................................................... 108 17 Cultural Heritage (P‐17) .................................................................................................. 114 18 Public Health (P‐18) ........................................................................................................ 120 19 Biodiversity and Invasive Species (P‐19) ......................................................................... 125 20 Erosion and Sedimentation (P‐20) .................................................................................. 133 21 Water Quality (P‐21) ....................................................................................................... 139 22 Reservoir Planning (P‐22) ................................................................................................ 145 23 Downstream Flow Regimes (P‐23) .................................................................................. 150 Appendix A: Written Support of the Project Developer ........................................................ 159 Appendix B: Verbal Evidence ................................................................................................. 160 Appendix C: Documentary Evidence ...................................................................................... 164 Appendix D: Visual Evidence .................................................................................................. 203 Kaunertal Expansion Project, Austria www.hydrosustainability.org | iii Executive Summary This report represents an Official Assessment with the Preparation Tool of the Hydropower Sustainability Assessment Protocol (the ‘Protocol’). The assessment was conducted for the Kaunertal Expansion Project in the province of Tyrol in Austria. The Kaunertal Expansion Project (KXP) is proposed by TIWAG‐Tiroler Wasserkraft AG (“TIWAG”), a corporation owned by the Austrian Province of Tyrol with its registered office in Innsbruck, Austria. This is the first ever Official Protocol assessment conducted in Austria. TIWAG has been an energy supplier in Austria and on international markets for more than 90 years, with the majority of its generation portfolio benefiting from the hydropower resources of the Tyrolean alps and river systems. TIWAG is a vertically integrated company operating in almost all sectors where electricity, gas and heat are supplied to customers via transmission lines. The existing Kaunertal power system was built between 1961 and 1964, and has a generating capacity of 392 MW. The KXP would add more than 1,015 MW of capacity to the existing plant, for a total of 1,407.5 MW from this scheme. The main features of the KXP are creation of a pump storage project by adding an upper stage reservoir to the existing Gepatsch Reservoir; increasing the inflows to the Gepatsch Reservoir through diversions in the neighbouring Ötztal valley; and increasing capacity of three downstream hydropower stations on the Inn River. The KXP is one of around ten power plant projects that TIWAG has at various stages of development. TIWAG’s hydropower upgrade and development program is in line with the Tyrolean government’s Energy Strategy 2020, Sustainability Strategy and the Energy Autonomy 2050. These energy policy documents aim for reduced CO2 emissions, and increased energy efficiency, renewable energy generation, system stability and energy security as well as securing affordable energy prices. The assessment focuses on the sustainability aspects of the KXP. This said, under several Protocol topics, the corporate‐level performance of the owner TIWAG is relevant. The Preparation tool contains 23 topics, 21 of which were assessed and scored by the Assessment Team. The topics Resettlement and Indigenous Peoples were not relevant for this project. Appendices B and C contain information on the interviews