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Vienna-Freudenau

Hydro power plant in Lower Austria, Austria. Approximate location 48.1766, 16.4814.

HydroLower AustriaAustria

Vienna-Freudenau is a 172 MW hydro power station in Lower Austria, Austria. It is operated by Verbund. Based on reported annual generation of 1,074 GWh, it can supply roughly 307k homes. It ranks #33 of 131 Austria power plants by installed capacity. Commissioned in 1999, it is around 27 years old — long-established. As a non-combustion source, it has no direct CO₂ emissions from generation. In context, hydro supplies about 51.8% of Austria's electricity; the national grid averages 117 gCO₂/kWh (83.6% low-carbon) (2025).

172Source-backed capacity
1,074GWh reported / yr
306,771homes powered
1999commissioned (~27 yrs)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id WRI1005267.

Data status

Known data

FacilityVienna-Freudenau WRI
CountryAustria · Lower Austria WRI
Coordinates48.1766, 16.4814 WRI
FuelHydro WRI
MW installed capacity172 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerVerbund WRI
Commissioned1999 WRI
GWh reported / yr1,074 GWh/yr WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#33 of 131 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#21 of 96 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers5.73× · 30 MW median · 96 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent306,771 calculated from reported generation
Climate10.1°C · HDD 3,005 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC2 · 27/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsnot applicable not applicable

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

The capacity and/or fuel fields on this page include a source-backed provenance label from GEM, an official registry, Wikidata, OSM, or a cross-source match.

capacity: GEM tracker 2026 (location L100000600102); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 172 MW, Vienna-Freudenau is well above the median hydro plant in Austria (30 MW). Hydropower converts the energy of falling or flowing water into electricity; output depends on rainfall and reservoir level, and large dams also provide grid balancing and storage.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Reported generation trend

2015: 964 GWh20152016: 1,070 GWh20162017: 1,074 GWh20171k GWh

Annual generation (GWh), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by Verbund. All plants by this company →

Local climate & thermal context

This hydro plant converts the energy of falling or flowing water through hydro turbines. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 48.2°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

10.1°Cannual mean temp
3,005heating degree-days (base 18°C)
128cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
172 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 0 °CJF: 1 °CFM: 6 °CMA: 10 °CAM: 15 °CMJ: 18 °CJJ: 20 °CJA: 20 °CAS: 16 °CSO: 10 °CON: 4 °CND: 1 °CD20 °C

Heating degree-days here run 22% above the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.

Climate heat-demand index: 63/100 — this site sits in the mid third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.

Site climate & environmental severity

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C2ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
27/100environmental-severity index
20.4°Cseasonal temperature swing
365 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #21 largest hydro power plant of 96 in Austria by capacity.

Austria has 96 hydro power plants in this dataset, together about 9,237 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 48.1766, 16.4814 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Vienna-Freudenau?

Vienna-Freudenau is a 172 MW source-record hydro power plant in Lower Austria, Austria, commissioned in 1999.

How much electricity does Vienna-Freudenau generate?

Vienna-Freudenau generates about 1,074 GWh of electricity per year.

How many homes can Vienna-Freudenau power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 306,771 homes.

Who operates Vienna-Freudenau?

Vienna-Freudenau is operated by Verbund.

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