Hieflau Power Plant

At the gates of the Gesäuse National Park on the river Enns in the municipality of Hieflau lies the most powerful VERBUND hydropower plant in Styria.

The powerhouse is located in the former ore mining area that surrounds the nearby Erzberg. It was built on the site of the Hieflauer blast furnace, remains of which can still be found at the edge of the powerhouse site. Today, thanks to state-of-the-art technology, approx. 80,000 households can be supplied with electricity generated entirely from hydropower.

The power plant was comprehensively modernised from 2007 to 2013. A new weir power plant was built in Gstatterboden and now uses the energy of the residual water section of the Enns. A second 6 km-long headrace tunnel increases the water intake to the modernised Wag reservoir storage and to the powerhouse in Hieflau. The three machine sets were also completely dismantled, and the Francis turbines were fitted with new impellers.