The liberalization of the electricity market has enabled the machine engineering company, Fill, to make the excess electricity capacities generated in-house available to its employees on attractive terms. The huge photovoltaic systems on the company buildings in Gurten, Upper Austria, produce an annual surplus of around 285,000 kWh. That is roughly equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of 80 single-family homes.
Gurten, 28 November 2023 – Liberalization has brought movement to the Austrian electricity market. While the surplus electricity generated by photovoltaic systems was previously fed into the public grid, it can now be offered privately on the grid. “As a company, we are taking advantage of this situation and since October 2023 have been making our surplus available to the team as ‘Fill electricity’ on attractive terms,” explains Andreas Fill, CEO and owner of Fill Maschinenbau.
Shared electricity is better electricity
The working price for “Fill electricity” is 6 cents per kWh, which is currently around 20 cents less than the price from the major electricity suppliers in Upper Austria. To ensure that the provision of the electricity is as unbureaucratic as possible for everyone involved, the company is cooperating with eFriends Energy GmbH from Nappersdorf in Lower Austria. eFriends is an innovative company through which the green electricity from Fill can be purchased directly by its neighbors or other private persons. The company is a pioneer in the field of “electricity sharing” and founded one of Austria’s first energy communities with one hundred households back in 2018. eFriends currently has 1,600 members, around 600 of whom are green electricity producers. The majority of the operators are private persons.
Economical and ecological
In order for the Fill employees to be able to obtain the low-cost electricity directly in their homes, the eFriends technology has to be installed in the respective distribution cabinet. For the times when Fill is unable to offer any surplus, it is possible to connect to other green electricity sources (PV, small hydropower plant, biogas) on the eFriends platform (marketplace) and thus always obtain cheap electricity at the current market prices. With this campaign, Fill is continuing its policy of sustainable, environmentally friendly energy management and at the same time allowing its employees to benefit from it privately.
One hundred percent energy self-sufficient
The multi-functional “Power Cube” car park will be completed in 2025. Photovoltaic modules with a capacity of a further 800 kWp will be integrated into the entire roof and façade of the building. This expansion will enable the company to largely supply its own electricity even in the fall and winter months. At the same time, the technical possibilities for installing an electricity storage system with a capacity of around 5 MWh (5,000 kWh) are being investigated. These investments should help Fill to be one hundred percent energy self-sufficient from 2025.
Corporate data
Fill is a leading international machine engineering company based in Gurten, Upper Austria. With sophisticated high-tech systems and custom manufacturing solutions for metal, plastics and wood, Fill makes its customers the best in their fields. The automotive, aviation, sports and building industries all benefit from Fill’s expertise. Since it was founded in 1966, the company has distinguished itself through enormous innovative strength, strong values and the best jobs. “If you are seeking the best solution, shape your future with Fill” is the guiding principle of the company’s more than 1,000 employees. “We are one!” is their vision and stands for togetherness not only with the team, but also with customers, suppliers and partners. The company is 100 percent family-owned and managed by Andreas Fill (CEO), Martin Reiter (CFO), Alois Wiesinger (CTO) and Günter Redhammer (COO). In 2022, Fill recorded sales of around 187 million euros.
Further information can be found at: www.fill.co.at
