Focus on secure supply

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The Ministry of Finance drew up a master plan for the expansion of broadband, energy and mining.

The multiple crises of recent years - from the corona pandemic to the interruption of essential supply chains - have shown that there is still a lot to be done in Austria when it comes to greater and more resilient security of supply. This is why Section VI of the Federal Ministry of Finance, together with the platform for infrastructure development, Austria 2030, and the departments for broadband and mining coordination, drew up a far-reaching catalogue of measures that is intended to serve as a guideline for the next federal government.

Gigabit-capable networks

The goal is ambitious, but achievable by pooling all resources: By 2030, Austria should be covered by symmetrical, gigabit-capable access networks across the board. This can be achieved through a dense fiber optic network combined with universally available mobile coverage, which enables every citizen, every company and all public institutions to use the opportunities and technical possibilities of digitization everywhere in the country under equal conditions.

Broadband Strategy 2030
The first steps have already been taken: In April 2021, the Ministry of Finance and the government presented an investment package worth €1.4 billion for nationwide broadband expansion by 2026. In autumn 2022, the first round of tenders for the "Broadband Austria 2030" initiative was completed with a funding volume of more than €850 million. In addition, the amendment to the Telecommunications Act created the framework for investments by companies.

tackling the energy crisis
Surveys of the management levels of leading companies show that energy is one of the top three challenges for a successful future. A secure and cost-effective energy supply is the crucial cornerstone for remaining internationally competitive and securing Austria as a business location in the long term. To achieve this, the ministry says, energy policy needs investment security, stable framework conditions, an investment-friendly climate, faster approval procedures and an objective discussion at the level of political decision-makers. When it comes to security of supply, natural gas will continue to play an important role as a transitional technology in the "green transition". Therefore, the gas supply must also be secured. Diversified supply chains and the existing infrastructure, such as necessary natural gas storage facilities, must be further developed to be future-proof.

Expansion of mining
In order to secure Austria as a business location, a stable supply of sustainable raw materials is also necessary. One way in this direction is through intelligent, recyclable product design, which makes Austria somewhat more independent of raw material imports. To this end, the BMF carried out a comprehensive analysis in the "Master Plan for Raw Materials 2030" and developed measures on how the entire cycle from the primary raw material to the recycling process can best be closed.

recycling where possible

Some of these raw materials can also be obtained through recycling, especially those raw materials that have already found other applications in the past, such as concrete, iron or copper. However, recycling alone is not enough to meet the demand for these "old" raw materials for energy production. "New" mineral raw materials, such as indium or germanium, which have not had any alternative applications to date, cannot yet be reused because they have not yet entered the raw materials cycle. The stakeholders are therefore called upon to actively face the major challenges of the future, to find solutions and then to consistently implement them.

Contact
Federal Ministry of Finance
Section VI
Platform for Infrastructure Development Austria 2030
Coordination Broadband
werner.weidlinger@bmf.gv.at
Mining Coordination
peter-johannes.kroeger@bmf.gv.at