The population of the Pfunds municipality (Landeck district) voted decisively against the expansion of the controversial Kaunertal power plant in a referendum on Sunday, with 84.45 percent voting “no.” Mayor Melanie Zerlauth announced the non-binding result on the municipality’s website Sunday afternoon. Tyrolean energy provider Tiwag plans, among other things, to build a massive pumped‐storage facility and reservoir in the high valley above Pfunds.
The referendum question read: “Should the municipality of Pfunds endorse the ‘Kaunertal Power Plant Expansion (AK)’ project within the scope of its rights in the EIA process?” Of 2,075 eligible voters, 68.14 percent participated. 1,204 citizens voted “no” and only 205 (14.55 percent) voted “yes.”
Environmental Concerns Drive Opposition
Debate over the Kaunertal project has raged for years. While the state‐owned Tiwag sees it as central to the energy transition and a boon to the local economy, environmentalists and citizen groups oppose it over fears of damage to wetlands and potential rockfalls around the plant. An environmental coalition of over 35 organizations gathered more than 100,000 online signatures against the expansion. Tiwag has denied that a high‐moor exists in the Platzertal area.
Green Groups and WWF Welcome Outcome
WWF Austria praised the referendum result and again called for the project’s cancellation. “Instead of this ‘planning fossil,’ we need an energy transition in harmony with nature and the population,” it said. Governor Anton Mattle (ÖVP) must urgently demand more eco-friendly and cost-effective alternatives from Tiwag. The Tyrolean Greens echoed these calls, calling the vote “an important signal that the era of railroaded projects is over” and demanding that Mattle halt the EIA process and open a new dialogue with residents.
Project History and Outlook
Plans for the mega pumped‐storage plant date back to 2009, with the first EIA submitted in 2012. Tiwag re-submitted the project in March 2025 after receiving four rounds of improvement requests. It has since been split into two parts: the first (pumped‐storage Versetz and Platzertal reservoir) is under EIA review; the second (Prutz 2, Imst 2 plants, and Ötztal water diversions) remains uncertain. Local opposition—including Sölden’s referendum on the original plans, which saw 96.19 percent “no” in May—has stalled the latter.
Despite past and current ÖVP-SPÖ state governments backing the expansion, Tiwag maintains the project is essential to achieve Tyrol’s 2050 energy-autonomy goal.
