Modern apprentice lodgings with view of the Danube at Ybbs-Persenbeug power plant

Country Director and member of the Landtag Bernhard Ebner passed on greetings from the province of Lower Austria on behalf of Provincial Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner: “Lower Austria does what a province can. That applies in particular to the generation of renewable energy. Today, half of Austria’s total wind power comes from Lower Austria, as does one quarter of Austria’s total photovoltaic electricity. We now want to accelerate this expansion with our blue-yellow path to energy independence: what we want for Lower Austria is the biggest and fastest expansion programme for water, wind, sun and biomass from across Austria. This also needs the best specialists, and we congratulate VERBUND on the pioneering decision to expand its training in the area of renewable energy.”
 
“The success and reliability of hydropower is ensured by our highly qualified specialists. In-house training has always been one of our company’s central pillars. With the modern training centre consisting of a superbly equipped apprentice workshop and the future high-quality apprentice lodgings, we are continuing this success story,” says Achim Kaspar, Executive Board member of VERBUND AG. “The impressive view of the Ybbs-Persenbeug power plant and the Danube from the new apprentice lodgings is also a symbolic glimpse at the future of the successful energy transition.”

“In the battle for the best minds for the energy transition, an attractive learning environment like the one we are creating here is an absolute must. The highly qualified specialists we are training in our own apprentice workshops are an important factor for the success of our company. The success of our training to date is no accident, but a mandate to us as a company to continue developing over time,” says Michael Amerer, managing director of VERBUND Hydro Power GmbH and apprenticeship officer at VERBUND.

“Investing in the future of training is just as important as investing in the efficiency of our facilities. Because there is one thing we must not forget: that it is ultimately motivated people who plan, build and maintain our power plants,” says Karl Heinz Gruber, managing director of VERBUND Hydro Power GmbH. “That is why we are also investing more than €12m in apprentice lodgings, whose functionality and look is intended to further increase the enthusiasm of our young people for hydropower.”

Apprentice lodgings as element of the training centre

With a direct view of the Danube, the apprentice lodgings will be built in an attractive location on VERBUND’s own land near the Ybbs-Persenbeug power plant. The ground floor will be built in solid concrete. The two floors above that will be built in a sustainable wood construction. 
A park-like area between the workshop and lodgings is intended to bring the two buildings of the apprentice training centre together by creating the feeling of being on a campus. 
Both in the outdoor areas with terrace and inside the building, zones of communication and retreat alternate. An in-house fitness room is available for leisure pursuits. There are 42 single rooms, including three accessible rooms, as well as seminar rooms to also allow seminars to be held for further education measures throughout the company. If necessary, the works kitchen can be opened up into a large event hall for 200 participants. 
The architecture office Viereck is responsible for the planning. The planning focused on functionality and energy efficiency, the location of the rooms, the accessibility of the workshops and short distances during training. Importance will be placed on high energy efficiency during construction. Construction began at the start of November and the building is scheduled for completion at the end of 2023.