Borealis continues decarbonisation push with 10-year hydro PPA

Austrian energy company Verbund AG (VIE:VER) will supply about 220 GWh annually from hydropower plants on the Danube river to Vienna-based Borealis AG to green its chemicals production near the capital.

The electricity will come from two hydropower plants in Aschach and Abwinden-Asten and will be supplied under a ten-year power purchase agreement (PPA), starting in January 2023.

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The contracted volume is equal to the consumption of about 50,000 local households and will result in the reduction of Scope 2 emissions at the production site in Schwechat by some 75,000 tonnes per year, Borealis said on Tuesday.

“Thanks to the around 2,200 GWh to be delivered by way of this PPA to our Schwechat operations over the next ten years, we are on track to achieve our 2030 goal of using 100% of electricity from renewable sources," said Borealis' chief executive Thomas Gangl.

The new PPA is the latest in a series of supply deals for green energy that Borealis has secured over the last few months. The Austrian company inked a 10-year wind PPA for about 150 GWh annually to power its operations in Belgium and another ten-year offtake deal for 130 GWh of wind power annually for the energy needs of a production site in Sweden.

In addition, Borealis is partnering with Verbund on a second solar project to power its operations in Schwechat. A 4.7-MWp solar photovoltaic (PV) system is currently under construction with commissioning planned for early 2023. Earlier this year, a 1-MWp photovoltaic array was put into operation on the roof of the Borealis production site in Linz to reduce its carbon footprint.