Legal Barriers and Open Issues for an Effective Implementation of AV in Austria

Abstract

Agrivoltaics (AV) represents a valuable alternative to solve the conflict between the expansion of renewable energy and land consumption in the course of the energy transition. Although the Austrian Renewable Energy Expansion Act (EAG) and accompanying regulations contain some provisions on the eligibility of AV under the national support scheme for renewable energy, the other areas of law affected by AV have not yet been adapted accordingly. In particular, there is a lack of appropriate zoning types in the spatial planning acts of the Länder that could promote multiple uses of land for AV. This results in an unsatisfactory legal framework that poses numerous legal problems for the implementation of AV in Austria. To ensure the long-term implementation of AV, the Austrian legal framework must therefore be adapted accordingly, especially with regard to the creation of suitable zoning types, which take into account various aspects, such as energy production, domestic agricultural production, landscape integration and social acceptance. In the course of this process, questions of competence between the federal government and the Länder will play a decisive role.