Austria to expand renewable energy supply with EIB financing of €57 million for super-hybrid park in Burgenland

• EIB provides €57 million in financing for Austrian renewable-energy company PÜSPÖK to develop integrated hybrid site in Nickelsdorf
• Agreement advances project combining wind power, photovoltaics and battery storage through shared infrastructure at four sites in Burgenland
• Erste Bank also part of financing accord, which brings total EIB support for Burgenland project to about €200 million

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing financing of €57 million for Austrian energy company PÜSPÖK to expand hybrid renewable-energy infrastructure in Austria. The EIB support will help PÜSPÖK develop one of Europe’s largest integrated hybrid energy sites in Nickelsdorf, a town in the eastern Austrian state of Burgenland.

The project combines wind power, photovoltaics and battery storage through shared infrastructure at four sites in Burgenland including Nickelsdorf, strengthening the integration of renewable energy into the Austrian electricity system. The Nickelsdorf site is the second-largest super-hybrid park of its kind in Europe.

The EIB financing is being provided primarily through a direct loan to PÜSPÖK, with a 10% portion to be made available to domestic lender Erste Bank as the national financing partner for refinancing purposes. With this arrangement, the EIB is assuming local project risk for the majority of the debt financing and – as a result – making a significant contribution to the project.

“The expansion of renewable energy and modern storage technologies is crucial for Europe’s competitiveness, energy security and climate goals,” said EIB Vice-President Karl Nehammer, who visited the Nickelsdorf site today with representatives of Erste Bank. “The combination of wind power, photovoltaics and storage solutions improves the integration of renewable energy into the electricity system, strengthens Europe’s energy independence and supports the transition to a resilient and climate-neutral economy.”

The Burgenland project has attracted previous financing from the EIB, whose total support now amounts to around €200 million. A key component of the project is agri-photovoltaics, which combines agricultural use with electricity generation by installing photovoltaic systems above arable and grassland areas. This enables dual land use, safeguards agricultural yields and generates renewable energy.

Agri-photovoltaics and wind power already supply more than 300,000 households in Austria with clean electricity. With the commissioning of the Nickelsdorf battery storage system due this month, the project will gain storage and flexibility capacities.

“This project strengthens Austria’s energy independence and demonstrates how the energy transition can be implemented in concrete terms in this country. As a financing partner, we are directing capital specifically towards solutions that combine security of supply and decarbonisation,” said Chair of the Board of Erste Bank Gerda Holzinger-Burgstaller.

PÜSPÖK is one of Austria’s leading private renewable energy producers. With 114 wind turbines, the company generates around one terawatt-hour of electricity annually, covering approximately 2% of Austria’s electricity demand. The project demonstrates how security of supply, grid stability and economic efficiency can work together in modern energy systems.

“With the launch of our first battery storage project, we are completing our super hybrid strategy and creating a true power plant of the future,” said PÜSPÖK CEO Lukas Püspök. “Super hybrid systems make it possible to provide renewable energy reliably and almost independently of weather conditions and time of day. With the support of the European Investment Bank and Erste Bank, we are creating additional capacity for a stable and independent electricity supply in Austria. Nickelsdorf is only the beginning, as further hybrid power plants in Gattendorf, Mönchhof, and St. Andrä are already under development and will gradually come online in the coming months.”

“Projects like this mark the next phase of the energy transition. It is no longer only about generating more renewable energy, but also about integrating it intelligently into our electricity system. Storage technologies play a key role. They increase security of supply, reduce pressure on the grid, and help ensure that affordable domestic electricity is available precisely when it is needed. As the federal government, we are doing everything possible to create the right framework conditions for such projects. With the Electricity Industry Act, we have already established an important foundation. The Renewable Energy Expansion Acceleration Act and the further development of the Renewable Energy Expansion Act will build on this, ensuring that such investments can be implemented more quickly, more easily, and more economically in the future. I would like to thank PÜSPÖK, the European Investment Bank, Erste Bank, and all those involved for demonstrating how the energy transition, innovation, and competitiveness can successfully work hand in hand,” said Energy State Secretary Elisabeth Zehetner.

The project is implemented under the REPowerEU programme, which aims to end Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels, accelerate the expansion of renewable energy and provide targeted support to the public sector in the energy transition.

Background information  

EIB Group  

The European Investment Bank (ElB) Group is the financing arm of the European Union, owned by the 27 Member States, and one of the largest multilateral development banks in the world. In 2025, the EIB Group signed €100 billion of new financing and advisory services for over 870 high-impact projects in eight core priorities that support EU policy objectives: climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, territorial cohesion, agriculture and the bioeconomy, social infrastructure, strong global partnerships and the savings and investment union. Beyond long-term loans for large infrastructures, the EIB Group crowds-in private investment for high-risk innovative projects and businesses, with a growing role in Europe’s markets for venture debt, venture capital, guarantees and securitisations.

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is the subsidiary of the EIB Group specialised in providing guarantees and equity to improve access to finance for small and medium size businesses and startups across Europe. Acting as an anchor investor, through its extensive network of partnering banks and investment funds, the EIF mobilizes private investment and nurtures the ecosystem of venture capital funds to support innovative European entrepreneurs.

In 2023, the EIF together with six member states (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands) launched the European Tech Champions Initiative, a fund of funds to scale-up innovative startups. This initiative has already enabled the creation of 12 European venture capital mega-funds and scaled up 38 companies, including 11 unicorns (with more than €1 billion in capital).

Photos of the EIB Group's spokespeople and headquarters, logo files and video B-roll for media use are available here.