The Role of Secondary Resources in the Austrian Energy Transition (ROSE-Trans)

The recycling of photovoltaic panels, wind power plants, and electric vehicles will gain importance in the future. The implementation of these product groups has been dynamic and they are likely to enter markets even more drastically if national pledges to achieve the climate change targets in the Paris Agreement are taken seriously. This has been highlighted in many energy scenarios developed for EU countries, including Austria. However, not much attention has been set on the recyclability potential of these product groups and their macroeconomic implications. So far, it remains unknown if the increase in product stocks for renewable energy production and consumption is consistent with the concept of a sustainable circular economy. Our research therefore aims to derive state-of-the-art information on current and foreseeable recycling potentials for these three product groups in Austria and to develop reasonable recycling scenarios in terms of circular economy strategies, which are in turn part of currently available renewable energy scenarios. In addition, a macroeconomic model analysis is used to estimate the effects on employment and value added as well as on selected energy and environmental indicators.